Izuku, the Next Symbol of Peace
by Drakonite227
Summary: Izuku Midoriya was destined for greatness. Whether it be in the light or walking in the shadows. His quirk: Quirk Duplication. Will not make being a hero easy. It will however allow him to become the most powerful hero the world has ever seen. Or will he be the one to doom them all? This is Izuku's journey to become the world's next Symbol of Peace. Cross-posted from Ao3.
1. The Beginnings of Heroism

The classroom of middle school kid was usually rambunctious and disorderly. Not today. Today was one of the few quiet days. Izuku was sketching Mt. Lady from her debut this morning. A debut he basically had a front row seat to. He pondered her powers muttering to himself all the while.

It took a palm from thee one and only Katsuki Bakugo slamming down on his desk to shake him. "Hey, Izuku cut that shit out," Katsuki demanded gazing down at Izuku. His gaze was one of annoyance, but not of rage.

"Woops. Sorry about that Katsuki. I was just thinking about Mt. Lady debut this morning," Izuku replied shrugging.

"Oh, I think the rest of us got that much," Katsuki retorted earning a few laughs from the class.

Izuku chuckled rubbing the back of his neck, "Sorry about that guys."

Someone patted him on the back, "Don't worry about it, man. We all want to be heroes and look up to them."

"Yeah, but an extra like yourself could never be one," Katsuki snapped a drop of rage in his eyes.

"I'm sure that everyone here could be if they put in enough work," Izuku rebutted smiling.

"Not all of us were born with amazing quirks like you two," someone chimed in from across the classroom.

"At least one of them has a least a halfway heroic quirk. Izuku's quirk is down right villainous!" another student mocked.

This set Katsuki off, "Hey! Fuck off! Any quirk can be heroic. Its all about use!"

"He's not wrong Katsuki. This quirk of mine would be something you would expect a super-villain to have," Izuku chuckled trying to calm down his friend.

"That would be like saying mine is villainous too!" Katsuki yelled small explosion coming from his hands.

"Oi! No, quirks in class!" the teacher yelled from across the room. Katsuki went 'tch' before calming down.

The rest of the class was complete uneventful. Izuku peered out the window most of time. The sun was setting in the distance when class was over. Katsuki snapped a finger gaining Izuku attention. "I was going to check your pulse next if you hadn't reacted," Katsuki chuckled.

"Sorry. Thinking about my quirk," Izuku said pulling a pencil to his hand. He had his mother's weak telekinesis. This was not his quirk though. Her quirk was just part of his. He had a quirk that any aspiring evil overlord would _kill _to have: Quirk Duplication. Any individual that made skin to skin contact with him he gained their quirk. Not copied, not sort of had a lesser version, an honest to god duplicate of the original. Secondary resistances and all included.

"You've got my quirk there's no way you can go wrong," Katsuki patted Izuku's back before standing up straight and pointing his thumb to his chest, "Because I'm fucking awesome."

"Thanks, Katsuki," Izuku replied getting up from his chair. He put his notebook in his backpack. Izuku stood just an inch short from Katsuki. He was nearly as muscular as the other teenager. He was plain looking, but had a brilliant smile that could lit up a room.

"Did ya fill out your UA application yet?" Katsuki asked as they left the room.

Izuku shrugged, "I've had it on my desk for weeks but... That's a place for heroes. And I really want to go, but I'm afraid that my quirk will paint a huge target on my back."

Katsuki frowned. He wasn't good at consoling others. He hated it in fact. Emotions weren't his thing. Well, except rage, rage was focus and strength. Izuku had been his friend for years. He decided maybe a harsher approach would work, "Look. We didn't put all the hard work in for you to become a Deku again. Man the fuck up."

Izuku took a deep breath, "You're right. Man the fuck up."

The two of them were halfway home, before it dawned on Izuku. "Ah, shit! I forgot my homework," Izuku sighed.

"If you go now, I think the school's still open," Katsuki stated with his hands in pocket.

"Alright I'll see ya at the gym then!" Izuku shouted rocketing off with a single explosion.

\- Old Underpass -

Izuku sighed walking past an old underpass that was supposed to save him some time. A sense of dread filled the young man. Years spent with Katsuki had honed his combat sense to some degree. Nothing compared to the blonde protege, but more than average.

"What a nice looking fresh sack!" a disembodied voice called out from behind him. Izuku rolled forward out of instinct just narrowly dodging a slimy tentacle.

"What the," Izuku managed to say before jumping out the way of another attack.

"What a fine specimen! You'll do nicely as my new body," the monster redoubled his efforts.

_Body possession is that even possible?!_ Midoriya panicked.

One. Two more dodges. Izuku was getting antsy. He really wasn't trying to use his power. He didn't want to give this monster anymore reason to pursue him. A slimy tentacle gripped onto his leg from behind. _He got behind me. That's what I get for worrying about his safety!_ Izuku chastised.

A large man came into view. Izuku body was getting slowly covered. "Texas," the man shouted earning an 'oh shit' from the slime monster, "SMASH!" Air pressure exploded from the man's fist.

"All Might!" Izuku shouted dropping to ground.

"I'm sorry I'm late. Don't fear for I am here!" All Might shouted. He was quick at work picking up ooze and putting it in bottles.

"Holy crap, I'm a huge fan!" Izuku was just vibrating with excitement.

"I bet you are young man! I'm impressed you held your own against him for so long," All Might's voice practically boomed with bravado and gumption.

"Thank you! I've been honing my skills for years," Izuku replied blushing and rubbing his neck.

"Alright! I hope you have an excellent day! I need to take this guy to the local precinct," All Might tapped his leg where the bottles were. He crouched down ready to leap. Without a moments hesitation Izuku leapt after All Might and grabbed his leg.

\- Random Rooftop -

_Holy crap, that was scary!_ Midoriya thought catching his breath. All Might had leapt with so much speed and height that Midoriya was out of breath from the wind.

"Young man, that was reckless!" All Might chastised him. White smoke was bellowing from the large man. "Damnit," he whispered. Then all of a sudden the towering man had vanished in a explosion of white smoke.

"All Might! Are you alright?" Izuku called out to him in the fog. Unbeknownst to Izuku a new quirk popped into his head. It was a small burning ember. It was fuel and fire.

A skeleton of a man waved his hand and cleared the smoke. Izuku jumped scared by the deathly looking man. "Who are you?!" Izuku shouted looking around, "Where's All Might?"

"Calm, down young man. I _am _All Might," the skeleton said placing a head on his chest. His gaze was the same stoic hero. Izuku nodded knowing this was not a lie.

"What happened? Why are you like this?" Izuku concern and worry dripped from his voice.

The thin Might sat down against the bars along the rooftop, "Heh, why indeed." It took the hero a few moments to decide what exactly he was going to show the young man. Thin Might lifted up his shirt, "This is why."

Izuku gasped and placed his hands over his mouth in shock. "That looks horrible!" Izuku stated examining the aftermath of an injury.

"It is. My entire respiratory system is damage and half my stomach was destroyed. I have a time limit now," Thin Might held up three fingers, "3 Hours and that's it."

"When and why doesn't the public know?" Izuku asked taking a step forward.

That question caught All Might off guard, "It was 5 years ago. The public shouldn't know. The public shouldn't know that their symbol of peace is this decrepit man."

"Sure, the villain would love to know, but the world should know that their symbol of peace is dying! At least then you can spur on the next generation and look for someone to hold your mantle!" Izuku shouted at the man a bit of rage is his voice. Another side effect of duplicating someone's quirk: a bit of them is imprinted on Izuku.

"You sound like you want this burden?" All Might asked narrowing his eyes.

Izuku looked away, "That's what I wanted to ask you." He looked back to the man, "Can someone with a villainous quirk like mine become a hero like you?!"

"A villainous quirk? How so?" Thin Might looked puzzled. While he had seen his fair share of 'villainous' quirks it was the individual that made the villain.

"My quirk allows me to duplicate someone else's quirk and use it as if I was born with it. A power that you'd find in a manga or TV show," Midoriya started to tear up. This was a sensitive subject for him.

Midoriya's quirk reminded him of another very powerful individual that had a similar quirk. That man was truly a villain. "That's quite the quirk you have," All Might left space making the unspoken question.

"Izuku Midoriya," he bowed realizing just how rude he had been.

"Well, Midoriya my boy, not all quirks are made the same. Some are more powerful. Some are weak. Some are like yours. Yours is one with tremendous potential and yet so very scary to the people of the world. You can take what makes us unique and.. use.. it.. for!" All Might voice trailed off realizing he had touched the boy head. It was merely to protect him but he didn't think that he had a quirk like that.

The man shot to his feet. "Do you have it?!" he questioned his teeth gritting.

"Your quirk you mean? Hmm," Midoriya rubbed his chin in thought. He found a new entity within him. It was some kind of power accumulation quirk. What power and where he did not know but it was there. It was like a warm hearth within his 'quirk space'. Unlike Explosion it had no toggle, but it wasn't like he could willingly pull on it. He held out his hand and channel this new power through Explosion. He aimed his palm away from All Might. He let out a small explosion.

The resulting force knocked him off his feet. He wasn't ready for it. Another unusual aspect was that his explosion was green? "What is your power?!" Izuku asked standing up.

"I'm surprised you can use it so quickly. What is it that you want to be!?" All Might stood tall over the young man.

Midoriya's eyes darted away, "I want to be a hero, but with this quirk I don't think I'll be accepted."

"Midoriya, I'm not going to tell you what to do with your power or that other heroes won't be afraid of. Trust me they will be. A power such as yours is terrifying to think of and even worse to behold. But if you wish to be a hero then run headlong at the goal with everything you have," All Might grinned giving the young man a thumbs up.

A small explosion was heard in the distance. A random street was blazing fire all around. A faint sound made way across the horizon. Izuku knew what it was. "Be a hero, huh?" Izuku looked at All Might's pockets and spotted nothing. Panic set in as he realized he had caused this. It would now be his duty to fix it. "I'm sorry All Might. I have to go!" Izuku yelled barreling through the roof access and down the stairs.

"That was unusual," All Might muttered shrugging his shoulder. Another faint sound came across the horizon. All Might figured he should at least check it out.

\- Scene of the Slime Monster -

Izuku was running at the best pace he could set. When he reached the crowd he couldn't believe the sight of carnage before him. The crowd was too dense to see what was going on. Heroes were shouting out orders. 'Contain the fires!', 'Help this kid!', 'We need a hero with a good quirk!', and 'This kid been holding his own for awhile now!' That last one caught Izuku's attention.

Like a call to arms, his friend yelling and shouting prompted action from the young man. He dove through the crowd in an instant and sprinted at the slime behemoth. Katsuki was smack dab in the middle of it. Heroes yelled at him to stop. He could only think 'if no one will help then I SHOULD!'

The slime monster was firing off explosions seemingly at random. "Izuku what are you doing here!" Katsuki managed to shout.

"I'm here to save you!" Midoriya shouted grabbing his friend's wrist. He let out a powerful blast pulling Katsuki halfway out of the behemoth.

"Damnit, I could have handled him by myself," Katsuki protested.

"You can say thanks later. Let's tag team him!" Izuku commanded.

Bakugo was about to reply, but nodded instead. He helped Izuku pull him out with another blast. The two teens were out of the slime mess and it was angry.

"You're the one from before! I'll just have to kill both of you!" the slime shouted sprouted numerous tentacles.

"While I doubt we can beat him. Let's keep him busy until a pro with a compatible quirk shows up," Izuku stated blasting away two tentacles.

"Let's do this then!" Katsuki smirked dodging and weaving around the slime. The two of them took turns blasting and defending. They worked beyond well in tandem. The pro heroes were just watching the two teenagers duking it out with the beast. Thin Might had just arrived at the scene.

He was astonished to see young Midoriya and someone he presumed was a friend duke it out with the slime monster. But the battle would be lost if someone didn't show up. The kids were powerful and coordinated, but they couldn't hurt him. It was a battle of attrition that they were losing.

Three thoughts came out in unison, _When will someone show up and help?!_ Thin Might gritted his teeth. _How dare I think of him like that villain! That right there is a hero through and through! And if I'm not willing to put it all on the line like them, then what am I?! _All Might chastised himself.

All Might burst onto the scene blocking an attack that would have landed. "I'm sorry I'm late! What kind of hero would I be if I just let you clean up my mess!" the man said to Izuku. This caught Bakugo's attention and no one else. "You reign of terror is over villain! Detroit! SMASH!" All Might swung his mighty fist. Air pressure rocketed out from the attack. All the fire around and in the buildings extinguished from the lack of oxygen. The local weather changed from the blast causing it to rain briefly.

Mt. Lady and the other heroes on the scenes had to brace the crowd and themselves from the massive blast. Reporter and citizen alike flooded the scene. The other heroes congratulated Izuku and Katsuki for having such impressive teamwork and buying All Might the time he needed to arrive. A few of the reporters even asked Izuku and Katsuki about the event. Katsuki boasted about his skill and the battle while Izuku focused on the fact no one got hurt. All in all they were just as professional as the actual pros on the scene.

They broke away after the few questions the reporters had. They gave their home addresses for the police if they wish to contact them about questions or make a report. At the few blocks away from home mark Katsuki had said his goodbyes and gone his way.

Izuku was nearly at this apartment when a large man landed in front of him. All Might's large form exploded into mist. Thin Might coughed up blood before speaking, "Thank you, for remind me what being a true hero is about!

"What I didn't do anything?" Izuku hand waved the man. He had merely helped his friend.

"When you heard his voice did you think?" All Might asked.

"No, my body just moved and before I knew it I was breaking Katsuki free," Izuku replied thinking back to the event.

"Every great hero has a similar story. 'My body just started to move on it own,' is the common thread they all share. I believe you have what it takes to become a hero, nay, the symbol of peace!" All Might declared.

"The s-symbol of peace," Midoriya stuttered tears well up in his eyes. Then like waterfalls they flowed. He made a good attempt to keep his composure only lasting a few seconds. All his life he wanted someone to recognize him as a hero or at least the potential to be one. His mother was always supportive, but being told was another thing.

"Come on, my boy, that's no way for a hero to look," All Might chuckled.

He wiped his eyes, "Yes, sir! Thank you I've waited so long for someone to tell me I'm worthy."

"How would you like to be my successor?" Thin Might announced holding out his hand. A sphere of power manifested in the hero's hand.

"What?" Izuku looked confused.

"I wasn't born with this power. It was given to me!" Thin Might declared.

This had floored Izuku. If his mental image of the man wasn't shattered it was now. His idol had been a quirkless man given the power of a god. Passing on quirks was a new idea to Izuku but considering how his power worked it was not beyond reason. The answer became clear to Izuku: Forge Your Own Path.

"All Might. Thank you, but I'll have to decline. I'll accept your other challenge though," Midoriya clenched his fist.

Again twice in the same day, Izuku had just floored the Number One Hero. "That was rather unexpected. May I ask why?" the pro asked cocking an eyebrow.

"While I appreciate the offer. I have two reasons: One, I doubt that power and mine would work well together. Two, I think with a quirk like mine I should forge my own path. I will however take your mantle," Izuku declared smirking.

This made Thin Might grin. Being the Symbol of Peace wasn't just being number one or the strongest. It was being the bastion of hope everyone look towards for guidance and inspiration. While also being the bulwark that protected the citizens from the villains. And if done well enough their presence would be felt so far that the mere mention of the symbol would strike fear into the hearts of villains. A lot to live up to. Toshinori was sure that this young lad could do it.

"I look forward to seeing you at UA then," All Might said walking off waving.

\- In Izuku's Room -

If Izuku wasn't motivated yet. He was now. He filled out the paperwork so quickly he was afraid it would catch fire. Of course it didn't but it could. The young man had completely forgotten about Katsuki and the gym. He immediately texted his friend apologizing for missing, but he had just completed all the paperwork in one night.

K: About time. Want to make a bet?

I: Bet for what?

K: How's going to take first place in the exam. What else?

As if Midoriya thought it could have been anything else.

I: What's the stakes?

He wasn't a betting man, but if it pushed them to be better he was all for it.

K: Hmm. Let's see.

K: Ah, I know. You can't use my power for two weeks after we get into school.

I: Fine. If its going to be that way. No swearing for two weeks.

K: Oh, fuck that. That's way harder.

I: No it isn't. Not using your power when its the one I know best is suicidal in the hero course.

K: You got me there. You have a deal.

I: Deal then. Good night, Katsuki.

K: Night.


	2. To Become Strong One Must Break First

10 months from now would be their fated day at UA. Izuku and Katsuki were in an abandoned parking lot. Both of the teens had worked up a sheen of sweat. They were relentlessly sparring. It was the quickest way to improve quirk resistance and strength their bodies.

"Come on, Izuku. Is that all you got? You've got my quirk and your mothers. Is this all you can do?" Katsuki taunted. Between the two of them, Izuku was tired and hurting all over. While he had Katsuki quirk he couldn't use anywhere near as good as the owner could.

"I've been wondering about this new quirk for awhile now. It's an interesting one!" green lightning crackled across his skin. Midoriya raised one arm and angled the other downwards. The enhanced explosion rocketed him towards Katsuki. He estimated that whatever this quirk was it could enhance other quirks. With his current flame it was only possible to augment his other quirks by at most 10%. In the case of Explosion it was closer to 21%. This was due to the quirk operating from two parts: one being the sweat and the other the actual explosion. Empowering both parts multiplied each improvement.

To say the least 21% was more than Katsuki could gap or overcome. Izuku was behind in power by maybe 10-12%. Two explosions collided and Izuku's won out. Katsuki let his arm take most of the explosion before reacting just in time. Izuku had landed next to Katsuki and swung his right elbow into him. The protege caught Izuku's elbow with his other open hand.

The blonde boy acted first swinging his other fist. Izuku combined a side step and his mother quirk to just dodge the strike. Izuku grabbed his opponents arm creating a stalemate.

Bakugo headbutted Izuku breaking the stalemate. The green haired teen stumbled backward and shook his head. Bakugo roared into the air planning on landing an aerial attack. Green lightning surged forth. Izuku shot out his right arm and another green explosion let loose.

The protege was no push over and had the skills of any master. Katsuki let lose an explosion that sent him out of the way. The blonde tumbled to the ground and skidded across the concrete. His side and arm got scrapped pretty good by the fall.

"Enough," Izuku panted.

Bakugo stood up his skin singed from the green flame, "Agreed."

"Two sparrings, two body building days, and two stamina building days. One day of rest," Izuku panted. "This will be hard to keep up with you. You know that, you damn, monster," Izuku smirked looking over at Bakugo.

"You want to be the very best. Then you have to train harder than them. Your form still needs work. That power is new though," Bakugo suggested.

"I got it from All Might," Izuku admitted walking over to his backpack. He chugged a bottle of water before an idea formed in his head. "Ever consider using water for training?"

"You got it from All Might?!" Katsuki shouted getting in front of the other teen.

"Yeah, its a power accumulation type. If he's had it for years it explains why he's so powerful. All he would need to do is stay in peak shape and the power would augment his strength, speed, and stamina," Izuku rattled off going back to his notebook.

"When did you meet All Might?" Katsuki continued questioning him.

"Just before helping you with that slime monster. I was... pestering him about having a villainous quirk," Izuku sighed looking at Katsuki directly, "It wasn't all it was cut out to be. But now I know I want to aim past him and take his mantle."

Katsuki chuckled getting himself a water bottle, "Look at you. A week ago you didn't even want to be a fucking hero, but now you want to be thee hero. God damn Izuku, just remember I'll still be number one."

"What kind of symbol would I be if I just let you beat me to the top?!" Izuku smirked chuckling.

"How did the first day feel? I don't want to tire you out and have to carry your dead ass home," Katsuki mocked.

"I think I just need to get used to it. I'll have to ask mom to add in more meats and vegetables into our meals. I'll also need to develop a better studying method," Izuku admitted finishing a bottle of water.

"I've got a fucking great one!" Katsuki laughed.

"Remembering everything is not a great one! Some of us have to actually try to be smart," Izuku retorted throwing the empty bottle at Katsuki.

The other teen swatted it out of the air, "Tch. Get a second notebook then. Take notes about what you don't understand and I'll go through it with you."

"Awesome. I'll head to the store now then. Otherwise I'll forget or worse get sidelined by a hero fight," Izuku chuckled knowing his luck finding or being in hero fights.

"Well, if you do: don't fucking fight. UA isn't going to like us showboating before we get into the school," Katsuki stated picking up his backpack.

Izuku did the same. The sun had nearly vanished off the horizon. Luckily, there was a convenience store just a few blocks from his house. He grabbed a few notebooks off a shelf, some markers, pens, pencils, and an eraser. There was a pink-haired girl at the checkout with a dozen energy drinks. She had bags under her eyes.

"Pulling an all nighter or two?" Izuku asked her.

The girl turned to Izuku and gave him a once over. He was a mess. Singed clothing and light burns dotted his skin. His hair was even more unworldly than normal. "I wish! This is just for tonight!" She was unusually peppy and spry for looking that tired.

"Woah, that can't be healthy," Izuku commented.

"Well how else am I going to complete my babies and get them submitted to UA?" she pouted.

"You're going to UA too? Support?" Izuku asked smirking.

"Yup. I'm going to be the best inventor there ever was!" she declared pumping her fist in the air.

"What a coincidence. I'm going to be the next symbol of peace," this earned him a grin from the pink-haired girl.

"Mei Hatsume," she presented her hand to him. It was odd and a bit American to do.

He shook her hand, "Izuku Midoriya."

"If you're going to be the symbol of peace, Midoriya-san, then I'm going to support you!" she boasted smirking.

"Slow down, Hatsume-san, how do I know you're any good?" Izuku smirked wondering what kind of rise he'd get. Hatsume made a face like someone had killed her grandmother in front of her. A look of determination and defiance came across her face.

She then got a little too close for comfort, "I'll just have to show you then!" She checked out and waited for him to checkout as well. Hatsume beckoned him before she broke out into a run. Izuku smirked and caught up to her.

"So where are we going?" Izuku asked jogging beside her. She wasn't quite fast enough for him to actually run. Another feature of hers caught his attention. It made him blush and he chastised himself for even looking. She was definitely a woman and the running was making it all to obvious.

"To my workshop of course," she smiled as if it was the most obvious statement ever.

"What you live around here?" Izuku asked still recognizing the area he was in.

"Not my home, but my workshop is around here," Mei replied as they turned down a street.

"You rented out a workshop? You must be really passionate," Izuku remarked.

"Well, my parents did. I sell blueprints to make the rent otherwise I'd have to make my babies at home," Mei stated slowing down to a walk.

"Let me guess they banned you from working at home?" Izuku guessed seeing a heap of broken parts and scrapped projects.

"Yeah, said I can't set the house on fire anymore," Mei chuckled. She was cute in her own determined, crazy way.

Izuku whistled when she opened the door to her shop. It was a mess. Tools all over the place. Broken bots, parts, broken you name it was here. "Are you normally this messy or is this an off day?"

"Huh? This is clean," Hatsume said pulling out gear and parts from seemingly random piles.

One of the things that his mother's quirk allowed him to do was recognize small parts. This room overloaded his spatial awareness trying to catalog and 'touch' every object. The inventor pulled out a notebook and sat at her desk.

"Okay, symbol of peace," she mocked, "What is your quirk?"

"If I tell you, promise not to get spooked," Izuku stood in the center of the room. She shrugged and gestured for him to continue.

"Quirk Duplication. I have the ability to gain another person's quirk as if I had been born with it. As far as I can tell all quirks are free game. Mutant-type only get duplicated if I met the prerequisite body structure first. Like if wings are your quirk, I can't duplicate that," Izuku explained looking around.

Before he knew it she was on him. So close he was blushing. Her glove on one hand was off. She touched his exposed neck getting him to back away instantly. "What are you doing? Skin-to-skin contact is how I duplicate quirks. Its why I wear these!" Izuku gestured to his long sleeve undershirt and green gloves he wore.

Then her quirk kicked in. It was a mutant-type, but one with a basic prerequisite: eyes. Izuku's pupils formed a plus sign. His vision zoomed in on her eyes. He shook his head blinking. That was a new one. Within his quirk space a new contender appeared. Her quirk was a lens within the space.

"Wow, I thought you were lying, but you duplicated my quirk," Mei marveled at Izuku. The potential he had was beyond her wildest dreams.

"What do you have a zooming quirk of some kind?" Izuku asked finally getting the quirk under control after a minute or two.

"Yup. Its called 'Zoom'. I can magnify my vision and if I really try I can see up to five kilometers away," Mei explained sitting back down. She was jotted down notes furiously.

"I can see why you're an inventor that specializes in robotics. Zoom would be very helpful for that," Izuku commented enhancing his vision to see what she was writing.

"Are there any limitations? Can you use multiply quirks at once? Do you need to learn the quirk? Or do you get some innate knowledge? How many quirks do you have?" Mei rattled off question after question.

"Only mutant prerequisites and stamina so far as my limitations. I can use multiply quirks at once and synergize them. I have to learn how to use the quirk just like the original owner. I have 4 quirks now, thanks to you," Izuku answered her in order and clearly.

"4 quirks? That's it? Don't you want more?" Mei asked more curiosity than anything else.

"Its not like I go around just touching people. Some quirks can't be turned off so I don't want to just get a new one and find out I can't use it with what I already have," Izuku then whispered, "Plus its kinda villainous to just go around collecting more power."

"Hmm, how does that saying go... Guns and knifes don't kill people. People kill people. Quirks are like that. Nothing more than tools to be applied at the owners discretion," Mei retorted before getting her peppy tone back, "What's the four quirks?"

"Weak Telekinesis, Explosion, Power Storage, and well, Zoom," Izuku stated.

"Wow, random, but a few strong ones in their. Power storage?" Mei asked jotting down more notes.

"I'm still not sure where the power is derived, but it doesn't lessen when used. It can super charge my other quirks. But costs double the stamina doing that," Izuku explained lifting up multiply items with his weak telekinesis.

"The limit of the telekinesis is about 10kg and I can control up to 10 items at once. It also gives me a sense of everything within 20 meters. If I focus hard enough I can check your pulse," Izuku chuckled sorting the debris and finding a chair. He pulled it out of the mess and set it in the middle of the room.

He then sat down and opened his palm aiming to the ceiling. He let loose a small explosion, "Explosion. Magnitude around 10kg of TNT at maximum. Causes damage to self at that level though. Secondary benefits is concussive resistance, enhanced bone strength, and thicker brain fluid to handle the concussive force better. Explosion is created by my sweat and is only detonated from the hands. Its composition is like that of nitroglycerin."

"You must have had that one for years to know that much about it," Mei commented finishing her notes.

"Well, doc, what do you recommend?" Izuku chuckled.

"I've got a few babies you could try and see if they work. Otherwise I can just test them on you!" Mei jumped out of her seat and fetched an arm guard.

"This is a prototype, but it _should_ work," Mei smirked clamping it on Izuku's forearm. It engaged a moment later covering from wrist to shoulder. The servos hummed as he moved his arm.

"What does it do?" Izuku asked finding his movement constricted slightly. He guard wasn't slow it was just tight.

"Its meant to damp recoil from rifles or other large caliber weapons. But I think your Explosion qualifies as 'large caliber'. Let's go outside and give it a try," Mei offered getting up. He followed her outside into the backyard.

He held out the reinforced arm and let loose. Instead of going light, he choose to let loose a 70% -ish explosion. The area quaked a bit from the concussive force. Usually, anything above 50% would cause noticeable strain, but the dampening effect had worked. The young man swung is arm in a wide arc before launching off a series of attacks.

The final step was to test durability. "You have the blueprint for this right?"

"Yeah, why?" Mei asked watching in horror as he let loose a point blank explosion against his own arm. While it protected him it was worse for wear after that. The servos were failing and snapping as he moved it again.

"You'll have to make it tougher and less tight next time. The brace worked, but I need something that can withstand getting hit by my own quirk. After all these aren't mine," Izuku mercilessly tore the rest of the arm guard off.

She knelt on the ground next to her decreased invention. "Failure is the mother of all invention. I'll do better next time. I think a titanium-tungsten alloy with a thin rubber interior would work. The servos and connector also need to be able to float and move with the user. Just in case you get some kind of transformation quirk it could compensate to a degree before breaking," she mumbled notebook in hand.

Izuku looked down at her and couldn't but help worry. She looked so tired, but so determined. "Hatsume-san," he called out to her. When he didn't get her attention he snatched her notebook. She tried to jump for it but Izuku tossed it up catching it with his telekinesis.

"Hatsume-san," Izuku said again.

"Give it back. I've still got to make a dozen more notes and ideas for you!" Mei demanded.

"And I think you should get to bed. Its dark out anyway and you look like death," Izuku retorted.

"That's not nice to say to a lady," she pouted crossing her arms.

Izuku nicely took her pencil and floated in up to her notebook. "I'll leave you my phone number. Call me in the morning after you've got some sleep and I'll return your notebook," Izuku said writing with his telekinesis. He ripped off the corner of the page where he had put his number. Mei could only watch the telekinetic perform his feats of precision. More ideas were flooding into her mind. The green-haired lad brought the piece of paper down to her.

"Fine. If I get some sleep, you promise to return it," she sighed.

"Yes, I do," he said bringing the book back down to earth. He caught it and held onto it. "In return, I'll help you test out your equipment and even spur you on if you get stuck," Izuku offered smiling.

She sighed and let down her guard, "I expect you here twice a week! I've got a lot of devices to cover and only 10 months before UA."

"Same here. Instead I'll be training those ten month and schooling and this," Izuku smirked for emphasis.

"Where do you live so I can get my notebook?" Mei asked shamelessly.

"I'm not telling you that," Izuku replied walking through her workshop to the door. He spotted a cot but it was covered in parts and devices. Making use of his telekinesis he cleared it off and sorted like things.

As if she didn't understand social queues at all. She started to strip basically in front of Izuku. His reaction was proper and quick. "What are you doing!?" he shouted.

"Getting ready for bed..?" she replied now in her bra.

"You're not supposed to just get naked in front of strangers," Izuku turned away unlocking the front door with telekinesis.

"Oh, but we're not strangers so it should be fine," Mei shrugged. _What kind of logic is that! _Izuku panicked closing his eyes. Not that it helped him much. His telekinesis gave him excellent spatial awareness so much so he could still 'see' with his eyes shut. Objects had no color, but he could make out their outline. Hatsume's outline was more than enough to fuel his imagination.

"I'll be going now!" He said swinging the door open and then closed it. He locked it from the outside and took off.

Hatsume shrugged. He was a weird one. But with a quirk like that she's wasn't passing up the opportunity to be _his _support. His quirk would force him into the spotlight, which in turn would bring her babies into the spotlight as well.

\- Home -

Izuku got home and tried to calm down his blush. He had almost seen a naked girl and that was just too much for his heart to take. "Izuku, you're late. Are you okay?" Inko asked from the kitchen.

"Yeah, I met a new friend and she's a bit strange," he stressed that last part. He kicked off his shoes and walking into the dining area.

"A she now? Is this something I should worry about?" Inko asked stepping into the dining area.

"No. It's not like that. More like a work friend. She wants to be my support and I think she's got the passion to do it," Izuku explained seeing a simmering meal in the kitchen.

"Symbol of Peace, right? You know I support you but your going to worry me to death aiming for that," Inko stated standing face to face with Izuku.

Ever since Izuku had gotten a quirk she was so relieved that he could pursue his dream of becoming a hero. Her heart had sunk when he was being bullied for having a 'villainous' quirk. After Izuku had explained his actual quirk she almost felt the same way. She knew as a mother she had to hope for the best but his quirk was 'villainous' in nature.

"Mom, I'm going to become the symbol of peace no matter what. I need to show people that being born with a villainous quirk doesn't make it so. I want to inspire everyone and strike fear in those that wish to do harm," Izuku stated clenching his fist.

She frowned but nodded. This was his dream and wishes. She had to respect that even if it killed her to see her baby hurt, burned, or sad. "Do you think it would be possible to add more meat and vegetables to our diet? In need for energy and protein for muscles," he asked.

"Yeah, sure I can do that. You're so strong already and you're hoping to get even stronger before UA right?"

"That's the plan. I don't want to walk into UA at the basic level. I want them to know I gave my all to be there and this is what I have to offer the world," his confidence was infectious. She nodded smiling. If he was happy that's all she could ever want.


	3. Time Flies

\- 9 months to go -

It was the second time he was there this week. The arm guard/brace had been but a skeleton the last time he was there.

"How does it look?" Mei asked standing next to Izuku.

"A little bulky," Izuku replied earning him a light smack in the stomach from her, "What its true."

"Put in on and tell me then," Mei shook her head.

Izuku slipped on the rubber insulating and shock absorption sleeve and glove. He then laid his arm in the guard. Being the wearer he closed the device. Once the clasps were close enough they magnetically aligned and bolts screwed into place. "Magnetic sealing. Do you think it could be made collapsible and deploy-able on the spot. Maybe being made from different materials for different scenarios?" Izuku asked flexing and moving it around.

"That would be difficult since not all materials are the same composite or properties," Mei was jotting down notes like a mad scientist. Which honestly she actually was one.

Izuku telekinetically opened the back door. Mei followed him notebook in hand. "The glove is a bit thick," Izuku commented squeezing his hand.

"Is that a problem?" Mei asked.

"My explosion come from my sweat so if the material can't breath and allow the sweat to pass it might backfire," Izuku looked to Mei.

"That's a cloth-rubber polymer, it should breath well enough," Mei assured.

"Alright," Izuku shrugged. He held up his hand. What happened next would have been called an unmitigated disaster.

The glove bloated. The fire and heat crept up his arm melting the rubber. The fire finally found a way out at his elbow. Izuku gritted his teeth in pain. Melting rubber burned like hell. He startedt ot claw at it trying to find the release on the metal part of the guard.

Mei dropped her notebook, "Wait! It requires two touch points to disengage the magnetic coupling!"

Trying his best to be calm, "Then assist me!" That request was all it took for her to get into gear. The first point was the wrist and about 20cm (8") away up the arm was the other point. Mei completed the circuit by placing her pinky on one and her thumb on the other.

"That's.. brilliant.." Izuku said through clenched teeth. The small battery maintaining the magnetic connection hummed as it powered down. The guard let goo. Izuku wasted no time ripping off the guard and the rubber. His explosion quirk gave him some limited heat and fire resistance. Just in case if an explosion was reflected or a point-blank range attack was made.

He was lucky to get away with first degree burns. Mei looked like she was about to cry. This was the first time anyone had ever been seriously injured by her babies. She had vowed never to invent anything that could harm people directly. There was enough violence in the world and she didn't want to contribute to it.

"I'm so sorry I should have listened to you!" Mei said tears welling up.

Izuku turned to her and she stumbled when he stepped towards her. Izuku was quirk to react. He wrapped one arm around her back and stopped her from falling. It was Izuku's turn to be far too close to her. "Hatsume-san, you can't blame yourself for this. I'm not even hurt that much," he tried to console her.

She studied his eyes. He was gentle and had some kind of determination deep within. His spirit and strength practically radiated from him. She looked away feeling like there was no possible way to match him and even worse she felt guilty. "I'll do better next time. If you'll still have me," she offered sniffing.

"Of course. If anyone can do it; it's you," Izuku answered steadying her before letting go.

Mei had liked being in his arms if not only briefly. He was warm and just being near him lifted her spirit. She felt like he pushed her to be better. "You better get that under some cold water before it gets worse or you get an infection," Mei advised.

Izuku chuckled rubbing his neck, "You're right. I'll take off for now and get this taken care of." He walked to the door and paused. The green-haired teenager sighed, "Look. Don't think that hurting me is fine or anything like that. Think of it like growing pains. I expect to get hurt aiming to be the symbol of peace. What I don't want is my friends and family lingering on the fact I got hurt. It's why I got hurt that should matter. If I saved a life or stopped a villain that should be focal point not some injury that can heal."

The pink-haired girl meekly nodded trying to wipe the tears from her face. After that he was gone. The inventor knelt down and examined her work. Fiddling with the magnetic parts only raised her frustration. Finally, she snapped and threw down the guard. She slammed her fist into the ground, "Come on put yourself back together. This isn't what Izuku would want." Saying his first name didn't feel bad. She wanted to think of him as friend, as a hero, as an equal. Taking a deep breath she calmed down.

The rest of that night she had redoubled her efforts. She was going to match his determination to be the best. The only way to get there is to reach for the heavens.

\- 8 Months to go -

For once the workshop was looking more shop less hoarders paradise. This was not because Hatsume wanted it to be clean, but because Izuku gave her no choice. He used almost exclusively his telekinesis to lift objects and sort them. He had found out that he could use power storage and his weak telekinesis together. It resulted in a bloody nose, but increased the capacity of his telekinesis three fold. Izuku made sure to make a note about the interaction in his notebook. 'Weaker powers are enhanced more than strong ones. Or maybe there is more facets of telekinesis than Explosion and it gives power storage more 'area' to apply to'.

The last 20 minutes or so he had been watching just over her shoulder. She didn't seem to mind the closeness and he was getting used to her. She was writing up a schematic for some kind of deploy-able communication device. That was at least what Izuku could decipher. He was doing his best to understand all the notes and designs. But he was no genius and worse had limited experience reading technical documents.

At first it didn't bother Mei. She understood he was just being curious. If they had more time she wouldn't mind teaching him all the symbols and the design process. She figured that could be useful for a hero to know.

She wasn't ticklish at all on her neck, but slowly her skin started to get goosebumps from his breath. It was hot and just at the right distance not to be stifling, but not so far that she wouldn't notice. Whatever it was eliciting from her must be a primal feeling. Her skin was getting flushed and blood was moving around. It was an abnormal feeling.

She felt annoyed to have eyes so close on her work, but at the same time his closeness felt _good._ It was a new feeling to have someone that really cared about you. Her parents cared but she determined it was more obligation than truth. Suddenly, someone else's opinion mattered to her. It helped that he was just as determined and crazy as her. He was fun to talk to. He wasn't overly critical, but not useless either. The input from him almost always was more than useful.

Some of the days, they just sat in silence. Izuku doing his homework and Mei working on projects. She even helped him with his homework.

But his breath was getting to her. It must be her womanly instincts getting affected. She turned her head to look at him. It was his turn for his skin to get flushed. Whether it be embarrassment or nervousness.

"Having fun?" Mei asked wondering if he was aware of what he was doing.

Izuku raised an eyebrow, "I-I'm j-just watching." The stutter was just too cute. Mei checks got beet red.

She then whispered meekly, "Y-you're too close." If Izuku wasn't blushing he was now.

"S-sorry," Izuku stuttered standing up straight and walking away. He was rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Her heart sunk a bit. Panic set in. She stood up knocking her chair over. "Sorry. I didn't mean to point it out. I.. I.. don't mind really," Mei admitted. This unknown feeling was creating a knot in her stomach. She messed up a lot but this was not something she was willing to mess up.

He turned to her and she feared the worse. "Its fine really. I was just overstaying my welcome," Izuku chuckled nervously.

That was not the reply she was hoping for, but it was better than some of the ones she could have thought of. "O-okay, just don't be a stranger," Mei replied mentally punching herself. That wasn't the direction she wanted to go. She wanted to address inner struggle. She wanted to get those feelings out of her head.

He collected his backpack and swung the door open with telekinesis. She wanted to reach out, but instead picked up her chair. Sitting back down she heard the door click. Mei wanted to cry a little bit, but held fast. This was not the last time they would she each other.

\- 7 Months to go -

Prototype test #3. Izuku was out in her backyard. The glove material was much thinner this time. He let loose several explosions. No backfire. He fired a point-blank blast at the guard. It held up just fine. Limit breaker test was next.

"Have you seen my green lightning yet?" Izuku asked looking to Mei.

"Green lightning...?" she repeated slowly. That was not the usual color of lightning. She assumed it was quirk related.

"Is there anyway to measure _what _it is?" Izuku asked punching the air a few times.

"I can see if its, electrical in nature, but beyond that I'd need to know more about it before I could make something to measure it," Mei replied making a few notes.

Izuku took a deep breath and channeled the power through his right arm, "It enhances my other quirks by some amount. That amount can only be determined after I use it to enhance them. The downside is that I eat my stamina at a terrifying pace. It also amplifies the physical repercussions of using a quirk. An enhanced explosion hurts my arms at a steep rate. Enhancing telekinesis causes nose bleeds fairly quickly."

"That sounds like a lot of hassle. It's powerful for sure and I can see why you'd use it but doesn't that sound dangerous," Mei commented.

"It is. It's horribly dangerous. But I have to use it if I want to get the edge over the original owners. I doubt I could ever match someone that was born with it, so this is my way to compensate for that," Izuku said aiming sky high. He let loose a green blast. Mei was not prepared for the shockwave. She fell over from it.

She looked up shock on her face. "What in the world?" Mei whispered.

"Did that trip anything? Except for you of course," Izuku wondered holding out a hand to her. He pulled her to her feet. She examined his magnetic couplings and the servos. The recoil force had damaged the servos slightly. They weren't made to withstand recoil force at that level.

"Wow, you damaged the servos a little bit. Those are made with titanium barrings," Mei marveled.

"I'd say its doing its job then. The recoil didn't hurt at all. In a real situation it would be perfectly fine for my hero costume to get wrecked as the fight grew more intense. The only problem I have right now is one that might be hard to fix," Izuku stated disengaging the guard.

"What problem? No solution is impossible," Mei asked smiling.

"It needs to be easier to apply. Right now the equipping process is a bit lengthy. If I wanted to put this one on a hurry it wouldn't be possible. Either it has to come in parts I can just slap on or contained in a compact object that would engage and assembly on me with a simple command or action," Izuku answered pulling the rubber off.

"That would be difficult but not impossible. It'll just take a lot longer to get it to the 'slap-on' state," Mei replied jotting down all new schematics and notes.

"I feel bad asking for so much. Especially, since I don't feel like I'm giving back anything," Izuku admitted.

"You've helped me more than you know," She blushed smiling up at him. They stood for a moment making eye contact. Then Izuku's phone buzzed breaking their eye contact. He reached into his pocket and pulled it out.

He unlocked the phone and spoke, "Hello, mom."

"_Where are you, Izuku?" _his mother asked.

"I'm at a friend's house," Izuku replied. Mei was a little offended by this, but not for being a friend. He didn't tell his mother who he was. This brought up deep, buried insecurities.

"_If you don't get home soon your dinner is going to get cold!_" his mother said a bit of worry on her voice.

Izuku sighed, "I'll be home soon."

"_Okay, I'll see you in a little bit,_" his mother replied ending the call. Izuku locked his phone and dropped it in his pocket.

"I guess I'll be back in a few days. Take care," Izuku said opening the door.

She nodded, "Take care." He looked back about to say something, but decided against it.

\- 5 Months to go -

Two teenagers ripped loose explosion after explosion. Izuku and Katsuki had been sparring for what felt like hours. Neither of them had landed a clean hit. Even with overpowering Katsuki explosions Izuku could gain no ground. This day was a battle of quirk vs quirk no contact outside of using quirks. Otherwise range and technique was all fair game.

Katsuki had got into what was basically point-blank range. Izuku blocked the extended palm and pushed the blast aside. His blonde-haired friend was keen and quick. Izuku went in for an explosion to counter. With Katsuki's other hand he blasted himself out of the way. He then pivoted on his foot and spun around. Midoriya could feel where he was. The green-haired teen sidestepped to his left. A blast of fire just missed him.

Izuku telekinesis had almost evened the playing field between the two. An explosion collided with Izuku's back. This knocked him over. He rolled out of the way and blasted himself to his feet. Katsuki had missed a landing blast by inches. Izuku let loose a green explosion. The blonde-haired teen didn't have the space to completely dodge the blast. He was broadsided by the hit and only dampened it by pushing himself a bit to the right.

Izuku blasted himself back a few meters. He tried something new. Empowering his telekinesis he formed a fist in his head and shot it at Katsuki. It only had about 30kg of force, but in the right place and speed it could still hurt. The telekinetic fist struck the blonde in the gut right around his diaphragm.

Katsuki gritted his teeth and tried to catch up his breathing. That hit had knocked the air out of him for a moment. It was just above a weak punch. Katsuki sailed into the air correcting his course with mini explosions.

This attack was different. Katsuki went high. He started to spin in midair as he descended. Midoriya's senses panicked. He empowered both quirks. Izuku raised both hands, using his telekinesis he made a cone of psychic energy.

"Howitzer Impact!" Katsuki yelled only a few meters from Izuku.

"Nuclear Blast!" Izuku called out letting lose a massive counter.

The green and orange blasts were massive. They effectively canceled each other out. When the dust had cleared there was one winner standing: Katsuki. Izuku had been pummeled into the concrete. Not from Katsuki's explosion but from his own. The green-haired teen was panting and his arms looked worse for wear. The blonde-haired teen was not doing much better. The green blast had just overpowered his own and the resulting heat and force racked his body.

"Only shit. That's one hell of a finishing move. I'd recommend not using your telekinesis to shape it. Otherwise the recoil force will be too great. It also looks like your arms barely withstood that," Katsuki pointed out standing above him. He reached out and offered Izuku a helping hand.

Izuku gritted his teeth from the pain and let his friend pull him up. "What was that Katsuki? Did you create a wind vortex and use it to enhance the scale of the explosion?" Izuku guessed walking over to his backpack.

He pulled out Aloe Vera and rubbed it into the skin on his arms. They had light burning all over. "Fuck. You guessed that right off the bat. Holy shit, I was hoping it would keep ya thinking for a bit," Katsuki was doing the same to treat his burns. Which for once were actually worse than Izuku's.

The green-haired teens ringtone went off. The teen rose an eyebrow and saw the caller id. He smiled and answered. "This is unusual of you, Hatsume-san. You usually text," Izuku commented.

"_I would have, but this is just too important. I want to hear your reaction. Its done,_" Mei replied. He could only imagine her grin right now.

Midoriya was grinning too, "What? Holy crap that's good news! I'll come by in a few weeks to test it out."

"_What?! How come? I wanted to see you soon!_"Mei whined.

"Its finals week and I want to do my best. Teachers have been a bit of a hard ass since we put in our UA application," Izuku answered wondering about her last statement. He could see her pouting.

"_Alright, I guess that's a good enough reason. Come see as soon as finals are over,_" Mei compromised.

"I will," Izuku looked at Katsuki who was glaring at him, "I've got to go. I might start on fire if he glares any longer. See ya."

"_Give him a good smack for me too!_" Mei cheered on before Izuku ended the call.

"What? I have a life too," Izuku shrugged dropping the phone in the backpack.

"Who was that? You seemed _real_ friendly with them," Katsuki pointed out.

Izuku blushed at that statement, "We're just friends. She's a mechanic and I've been testing out her gadgets."

"Why are you helping her when you have so much to do already?" Katsuki asked a bit of rage in his voice.

"I'm doing just fine. She's been helping me with my studies too!" Izuku retorted only realizing afterwards that was the wrong thing to say.

"Then what the fuck am I doing helping you? You went behind my back and got help even though I offered!" Katsuki was about to go to blows.

"I asked for her help because you already have so much shit on your plate! I don't want to rely on you for everything! I have to carve my own path too!" Izuku shouted back at him.

The rage was dripping from his voice now, "Well, fuck you then. Go get your fucking help. I'm not fucking doing it anymore." The blonde-haired teen picked up his bag and walked off. Izuku chastised himself, but decided going home was better than pursuing the other teen.

\- 4 Months to go -

The workshop was dimmer than normal. It had been two months since he'd seen her. They had talked in texts and over calls, but nothing could replace talking to her in person. Mei was looking deathly. She looked like she had dove headlong into her work and gave up sleeping.

Izuku knew better to focus on that first. The invention would come first and Mei health would be his immediate next concern.

The arm guard was in a few pieces. Wrist cuff, forearm guard, tricep guard, and should link were on the table. "They're designed so that if any two adjacent pieces are equipped they will lock together," Mei declared watching him with notebook in hand.

Izuku grabbed the wrist piece and clasped it on. Next was the forearm guard. When it locked on the mechanisms engaged and the wrist and arm part connected. Next was the tricep guard. The locking in place was normal, when it engaged it felt weird. Plates moved up from the forearm to the tricep covering his elbow. Finally, the shoulder link which was a small ring that clasped from shoulder top to armpit. When they engaged metal plated moved over his shoulder. The joints were nice and allowed for full movement. A rubber layer had been installed into the metal plates and moved with them.

Izuku determined that overall structural integrity was lower than before, but it would handle recoil better. He felt that was a fair trade off.

"Wow, that's awesome. If I slapped them on I could get on the move immediately and let them finish while I was moving," Izuku commented smiling.

"The disengage mechanism is now on every piece. Two point system like before. You don't even have to wait for the piece to compress before you can take it off. The magnetic coupling goes first and the rest is an automatic process that can happen off you," Mei explained.

Izuku nodded finding the pressure points. The arm guard operated exactly as she stated. He set it back on the table. Then as an off comment, "You should make a suit out of this. Chest guard, greaves, and boots. Maybe even a helmet." Izuku struck his palm as he thought of an idea, "You could apply this tech for firefighters, police officers, construction workers, or whatever else. It so versatile!"

"Of course, you'd think about everyone else. Maybe I'll submit that for my UA application," Mei grinned.

"Now, Mei-san," Izuku said looking to Mei. This caught her off guard. This was the first time he had said her first name. If he didn't have her attention, he was now the only thing in her vision. "I'm going to be checking up on you more often. You. Need. To. Sleep. Your health has been declining so much," Izuku said moving to her. He was standing in front of her. She looked up meekly and then away.

"I.. was planning to after I got the project done," She started to chuckle, "It's not like I need that much sleep."

"No. You need to balance sleep and work. Sleep revives the body and heals our minor processes," Izuku said sternly. What he did next surprised her. He put two fingers on her chin and gently turned her head. "Mei-san, I care about you. I hate to see what you have done to yourself," Izuku had the most sad look on his face that she had ever seen. This hurt more than the time she hurt him.

She put her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry. You must know what it feels like, right? That burning determination, the drive?" Mei blurted out. She felt his hands through her hair. His fingers were rough, but it was so gentle.

"I do better than anyone else. Its the only thing that keeps me going. But like any fire you can't let it consume you," he said eye welling up. Memories of his past flew through his head. All the hate. All the times he had been called a villain. All the pain that was caused trying to prove his worth. The inferno that was his determination could no longer be quelled at this point merely directed.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you," Mei replied feeling that burning sensation in her eyes. The telltale signs of crying.

Izuku took a deep breath and one big sniffle, "That's why I'm going to be here more. Someone's got to look out for you."

Mei looked up and saw his teary eyes. She smiled, "You big, idiot." She initiated a tight hug. They held the hug a little longer than friends should.

Izuku was the first to break the silence, "Now, get to bed. I'll be back tomorrow. If I'm out any later, my mom is going to send a search party." Mei laughed at that one.

"Then get going, Izuku," she replied breaking away. He helped her clear off her cot. She sat down and watched him leave. He stopped at the door.

"It doesn't sound like you're getting to bed," Izuku chuckled opening the door.

Mei smirked, "Here I thought you liked the show." Izuku turned beet red. He fumbled his words ending up saying nothing intelligible. He promptly left after that embarrassing display of what was basically his brain short-circuiting.

After the door closed, Mei slumped her shoulders and yawned. She wondered what he thought of her as a woman. Physically, her body was failing her due to the lack of sleep. Emotionally, she never felt better. She had found a kindred soul. One that had been through MUCH more strife than her. All that was on her mind was easing his pain. The instant she laid her head against the pillow she pasted out.

\- 2 Months to go -

Izuku had been over to her workshop so much that he had to finally tell his mom who she was and why. Inko backed off a bit knowing he was at that age. Mei had been at the Midoriya household a few times after that. His mother liked her, but thought she was a little crazy. Not in a deranged way, but too much focus to be good.

Mei had just finished the chest guard prototype. The first obstacle was that it had to be morph-able enough to fit multiple body types. The second obstacle was that it had to stay on the user without magnetic coupling. She knew she could add a back piece to it that would connect to the chest, but most people that were police officers or firefighters received injuries from the front. So it was a point of cost effectiveness to have a basic load out and then one for full protection.

The chest guard covered from the collar bone to the just past the ribs before it deployed. Suction kept on the first piece, but after it deployed three connectors would be formed in the back. The connectors were built as many swiveling and stretchable plates to allow full movement. Overall the chest plate felt pretty good to have on.

"Alright. Take that wrench of yours and hit me," Izuku requested. Mei had in hand a rather large wrench. Harden steel no less. She smirked and swung right in the middle of the chest. She was much stronger than she looked.

Izuku grabbed his chest gasping for air, "I.. wasn't.. expecting.. that!"

"Well, you said 'hit me', you didn't say how hard," Mei coyly replied.

"Nope.. nope.. I deserve that," Izuku said finally getting his breath before continuing, "You might need more shock absorption. I still felt a lot of the force from that hit. I'm going to guess its bulletproof at this point, but there are a lot of quirks out there that can hit harder than that."

The release points were just under the chest part of the gear and then on the back of the neck. The armor popped off Midoriya. He caught it in midair. She was jotted down his comments and anything else interesting.

Placing the chest guard on her desk he found a chair nearby. Izuku was looking over the schematic for the chest guard. Spending more time with her had the side effect of learning all the technical designs and terms she used normally. He still didn't understand the specifics, but he had a good enough grasp to know _where_ improvements needed to be made.

Hatsume finished her notes and sat at her chair. She sighed. "Do you think I'll get into UA?"

This floored Izuku. She was the most brilliant person he knew, "What are you talking about? There's no way that UA wouldn't accept you." He put a hand on her shoulder. Her muscles were a knotted mess. Izuku mouthed a 'wow'.

Without being asked or even knowing she needed it he stood up and set his fingers to massaging. The first time he had done this for her, he was a nervous mess. Izuku could barely keep his hands steady. But now it was like second nature. Hatsume's head slumped from the relaxing feeling. Then to his surprise a weak moan escaped her lips. This made him red in the face, but he pressed on. It didn't take long for her head to be on the desk just absorbing the massage.

"Why? I didn't ask," Mei wondered feeling his fingers trace down her back making circles as he went. Goosebumps crept onto her skin from the sensation.

"You need it. Just rest and take it," Izuku replied adding his telekinesis to the mix to get the hard to reach inner muscle.

That earned him a deep, long moan. "Take it, huh? When did you become so assertive?" Mei mused imagining his reaction.

He mentally punched himself. Him and his choice sometimes, "I didn't mean that. I just want you to enjoy it and relax."

"Oh, trust me. I am enjoying this thoroughly," Mei admitted shamelessly. Izuku continued his assault massaging her as thoroughly as he could. When he finished with her back he moved to the arms. Instead of doing it his usual way, he was right behind her leaning over her to reach. Her back was on his chest and he felt strong. His muscles had been trained to be peak performance and it was such a pleasant sight.

She looked up at him and saw that determined look on his eyes. What she did next must have been unconscious because there was no reason for her to do it intentionally. The pink-haired girl reached out and touched his triceps. He was leaning over her right side trying to rub her wrist. This caught his attention stopping him but more important getting him to look straight at her. They were face to face no more than a dozen centimeters apart (~5").

Before he could realize how close he was, she brought her right hand to the back of his neck. She pulled and closed her eyes. She planted a kiss on his lips. Her heart soared.

Izuku was panicking internally. This was his first kiss and no less it was completely unexpected. He admitted that it wasn't out of nowhere. Whether intentional or not this tension had been building up between them.

Mei the initiator and the one in control broke the kiss. It took a moment for her brain to catch up to her body. Both of their faces were red. She let go of him.

The green-haired teen pushed aside his doubt and worry. He knew in that moment he had to reassure her feelings and assure her of his. He caressed her cheek with his right hand before kissing her back. The young man pulled her out of her chair. She draped her arms around his neck. His circled around her back. She was on the tips of her toes. Their kiss turned sloppy and passionate. Neither of them really had any experience, but they made up for it with desire.

Her hands ran across his body. That's when Izuku's mind caught up finally. He broke the kiss but still held her. "I.. I want to know what this is first," Izuku managed to ask.

She gazed deep into his eyes. _The truth, Mei_ she told herself. "I've never done anything like that... But it felt so.. right. What do you want me to be?" Mei reversed the question.

That was actually unfair of Mei. Izuku had a duty as a hero to help, save, and defend. He knew that loved ones were always put in danger because of that. Many heroes solved that problem by having no one. But ultimately, that was an empty existence. Those heroes stopped being people and only focused on their work. That's not how Midoriya wanted to live. He wanted someone to care about him as a person and the more the better. Friends and family is what gives us strength. If you have no one to fight for then why are you fighting.

The hesitation spoke volumes. She knew it was a difficult choice for him. But that didn't make it hurt any less. He was after a hero and he needed to decide if both of their lives would be on the line. "I.. I want to believe that I can be more. That I can be better. Mei, I want you in my life. I also want you to be happy. Will this make you happy?" Izuku somehow got her to shoulder the decision again.

"It will," Mei simply replied.

"Then will you be my girlfriend, Mei?" Izuku asked smiling.

She smiled tearing up, "Yes, of course!" They kissed again. Tears of happiness running down her cheeks. Izuku felt like that was better course of action then let desire and passion carry them away. They might have ended up doing something they both would have regretted.

After this Mei was much more peppy about her gadgets and just everything in general. Izuku felt better to knowing a huge weight had been lifted. When they had to part ways, he was so excited he ran home. He knew he'd want to tell his mother right away.

Unfortunately, for Izuku this lead to the awkward conversation about sex that he'd never wanted to hear from his mother. He knew enough already from health classes and the internet. By the end of the conversation she offered to at least buy protection just in case.

Izuku was laying in his bed. He had the thought to tell Katsuki, but they were on rocky terms for nearly a month. They still talked, but it was more strained than usual. Eventually, the young man gave up on that idea and just went to sleep.


	4. Rattle the World

It was like a dream come true. The gates of UA were beautiful this time of year with the Sakura trees in blossom. They were early. Izuku was vibrating with excitement and Katsuki just couldn't wait to get the practical exam. Neither of them knew what it was going to be but any chance to use their quirks was welcomed.

Students were filing in from all over the country just for their shot at UA. It was known as thee most prestigious hero school around. "Let's get registered," Izuku said striding forward.

"I can't wait until I beat your shitty score and I see that look on your face," Katsuki mocked grinning madly.

"Tch. I just hope were in different areas for the practical. As much as I'd like to complete directly with you. It would hurt both our scores," Izuku reasoned walking through the front doors.

"Greetings, which course for you two?" a man behind a clothed table asked.

"Hero," they said in unison. The man smirked.

"Names and contact information," the man asked moving around clipboards.

"Izuku Midoriya," Izuku replied. "Katsuki Bakugo," Katsuki stated.

"Alright, got you both. Here's your numbers and down the hall to the left. Take a seat in the auditorium," the man instructed handing them each a card with their name on it.

The two teenagers went down the hall and into an already open set of doors. Very few applicants had shown up yet. They were among the first dozen or so. Izuku surveyed the room looking for anyone that stood out. A man with sharp eyebrows stood out. Katsuki took his spot. The stage of the auditorium was still empty.

Izuku decided if anyone was worth speaking to it would be after in class. The last thing any applicant wanted was to strike up a friendly conversation with someone they might not see again. The green-haired boy took his spot. "Anyone catch your eye?" Izuku asked reading over his card and the provided booklet in front of him.

"These guys are all just extras. At least we won't be together," Katsuki replied lending on his palm. He had a lazy bored look.

"I saw. That's good. I can go all out without messing with you," Izuku couldn't help but smirk at that thought. In preparation of this event they took a whole week off from using their quirks and just focused on basic maintenance exercising.

"Like I said be prepared to lose," Katsuki smirked. Present Mic entered the room once enough applicants had shown up. He wasn't quite ready to start but he was looking at the crowd.

"Oh my god, is that Present Mic! I love his radio show," Izuku fanboy-ed over the pro hero. This was much to the dismay of the applicants near him. Katsuki in particular could care less about the other pro heroes.

"If you don't shut it. You're going to get called out," Katsuki pointed out. Izuku mentally Karate chopped his train of thought and zipped his lips.

After another ten minutes the lights were dimmed. Present Mic started off, "Can I get a hello?!"

Literally, no one even tried to speak. Izuku considered it just to get a rise out of folks, but thought against it. Present Mic whispered or at least what he thought was a whisper, "Tough crowd."

"Welcome, to the hero course exam! This will be a two parter. One part written exam and the other will be the practical exam. Let's start by going over the practical exam rules and guidelines!" the voice hero clicked a remote in his hand and the wall behind him clicked on. A screen with a robot showed up.

"These faux villains will be your opponents! They are score from 1, 2 & 3" Present Mic clicked through the each slid showing what they looked like. Fairly basic designs compared to anything Mei had constructed.

"I believe there has been an error made!" one applicant rose his hand. "There's a zero point robot listed in the booklet. If this was some kind of error it reflects poorly on UA!" he was passionate. Midoriya had to give him that.

Present Mic's eye twitched, "I was just about to get to that big guy!" The hero clicked again and flipped to shot of the zero pointer compared to buildings. Izuku unconscious whistled at the size of that robot. "Exactly, this robot will be meant as an obstacle to overcome in the course and should be avoided at all cost," Present Mic declared before shutting off the display.

"First we will hand out the written exams and then give each of you gym clothes to your specified sizes. This is to promote fairness for grading purposes and assess your quirks. I don't need to tell you; quirks will be allowed for the practical exam!" Present Mic ended his speech. The lights flashed back on.

Assistants handed out the written exam. It was like an SAT but slimmer. They had 2 hours to complete the 10 page assignment. Izuku shrugged just by a glance he realized that most of the questions were geared towards a grade lower than the one they would enter.

Many of the applicants sailed through the written exam. The entire group was done in around 45 minutes. Gym uniforms were handed out and locker rooms were provided. In the locker room, "See you at class. Kick ass out there Katsuki."

"Likewise, Izuku," Katsuki smirked. The two teenagers gave a strong fist bump before parting ways.

\- At Faux City B -

Midoriya stretched out his legs and arms. A few of the applicants recognized him from TV. "Woah, that's Izuku Midoriya," a few of them whispered. After being featured on the local news and even congratulated on national TV by a few of the heroes present the duo had made quite a name for themselves. Eventually, this lead to Izuku's quirk or at least part of it getting revealed. The public reaction towards him was to say: venomous.

"Despite what you guys might think of me. I wish all of you the best of luck," Izuku said grabbing everyone's attention. The applicant before with sharp eyebrows pushed up his glasses and nodded. A few of the other applicants seemed to calm down after the tense air had be broken.

"But I'll be the first to say," Izuku raised his fist, "PLUS ULTRA!" Several of the other applicants joined him.

Present Mic voice came over the loud speaker, "Alright. I hope all of you are ready! Its show time!" Izuku rocketed forth. "This guy gets it. There are no bells in a real scenario! Get out there and SMASH!"

Izuku had tore through nearly a dozen robots before he rocketed into the distance. He pitied the other applicants they didn't have the power he had. Thanks to Hatsume he had honed the skills of his weak telekinesis. He was now able to sense into sealed containers and pull or push the contents. It was much easier to do with inanimate objects as their parts tend to be more static.

Izuku had tried to do it with living objects, but if anything was moving like blood or water. It felt slimy to his telekinesis and he stopped trying to mess with it after that. He did find out it would be possible to stop someone from breathing but that felt really fucking villainous.

"Explodo-Bullet!" Izuku shouted firing off basically shaped explosions at robots. They were more precise and had some penetrating power. It was made possible by combining weak telekinesis and explosion.

10 minutes had passed. Izuku had scored a whopping 74 points. He was getting tired running around and combining quirks. Instead he decided to take it easy and find some of the other applicants. Then the ground shook.

"What the?!" Izuku saw the ground split. He blasted himself away from the opening. Applicants started to run so soon as they felt it. The first movement it made shook the ground. The extra large mech grabbed onto two building causing rubble to fall all around it. Izuku felt like he was at a safe distance. Then he heard it. "Help!" a brown-haired girl called out from under some rubble. Her foot had been caught under a slab of concrete. The mech was approaching her. Applicants other than Izuku ran from the robot still looking for other robots.

Izuku made eye contact with her and that's all it took. He soared across the ground blasting his way over to her. He skidded to stop next to her and knelt down. "Are you okay?!" Izuku asked making the occasional glance at the giant robot.

"Yeah, my foot is pinned and I can't get out," she said panicking. She was desperately trying to remove her foot before the robot got to her. The robot was on them.

"Shit! Brace yourself. This is going to be loud!" Izuku channeled power into explosion. He then built up as much sweat as possible. Green lightning crackled over his skin. It was 3 seconds to death. Izuku brought up his arms putting them wrist to wrist much like a kamehameha. "Nuclear BLAST!" Izuku shouted.

\- Observation Room -

The teachers were watching the carnage from the comfort of their observation room. They were at the edge of their seats. The green-haired boy had just rocketed over to the pinned girl. "Power-Loader should we stop it?!" Present Mic asked watching potentially a horrific scene.

"I think he can do it. He didn't hesitate to check on her instead of just killing the mech first," Aisawa pointed out.

"Let's see what he can do," Vladimir stated weaving his fingers together.

A few more seconds past. The teachers were collectively starting to panic. Applicants getting hurt during the practical exam was common, but two deaths would be something else.

"Power-Loader halt it!" Present Mic called out.

"Is that green lightning?" Power-Loader pointed out. All Might was present and panicking just as much as everyone else. He more or less knew what Midoriya was capable of, but the next moment shocked everyone.

The explosion that followed Midoriya's call out was on another level. It had so much power it felt like they were experiencing an earthquake. It would be known later that day that explosion had tripped the local earthquake Richter scale. It was registered as a 4.6 on the scale.

The giant mech was no more. The buildings around it had also been obliterated. Debris and rubble were falling from the collapsing buildings.

The green-haired kid just stood there. It looked like he had broken his forearms, but was still conscious. The teachers let out a collective sigh. They all tallied points for the young hero.

\- Back on the Ground -

Izuku's ears won't stop ringing. He had surpassed his limit and then some. If he had known the effect was going to be that great he would have just let loose a normal super blast. The pain in his arms was sharp and constant. Broken probably. But not shattered hopefully.

He looked over to see the brown-haired girl standing up and away from him. She was trying to shout something at him. Izuku looked up and saw it. Before he could react she had tackled him. A large chunk of rubble landed just where he had been standing.

The ringing slowly subsided. "-okay. Are you okay?!" the brown-haired girl was yelling at him.

"Broken arms I think. Thanks for the save," Izuku said with her on top of him. Before he could warn her she had picked up one of his arms to make sure nothing was sticking out. Another quirk appeared within his quirk space. Light green pads formed on his finger tips. _Great_, Izuku thought sighing.

"How many points did you get?" she asked him.

"74 points. Until that thing came around," he replied realizing that the robot wasn't in piece; it was vaporized by the force and heat his Nuclear Blast produced.

"Wow, 74?! That's crazy high. I got 40," She stated still hovering over him. A blush formed on her face and she jumped to her feet.

"I'm sorry. I did something without your permission," Izuku said sitting up.

"W-what are you talking about?" the blush had diminished a bit.

"My quirk-," the end of match bell sounded off. Izuku let it finished before continuing, "My quirk allows me to duplicate another person's quirk. It requires skin-to-skin contact and the effect is permanent."

"So you have my quirk now?" she asked a bit confused.

"Yup," he said holding up his hand. Despite the pain he could still move his arms. Using explosions hurt badly though. His other powers still functioned fine.

The brown-haired girl saw the similar pads of skin that she had on him. Her gut reaction was to be afraid or disgusted, but he had just saved her life. He can't be a bad guy if he did that. "I really am sorry. Normally, I warned people before hand so they can avoid me," Izuku repeated kneeling and bowing his head on the pavement.

She was taken back by just how seriously he took his words. Midoriya's words were genuine and he wanted her approval or punishment. "Alright, how about this: get to know my quirk and help me with it. I'll let you figure out the downsides," the brown-haired girl offered.

Izuku raised his head, "Thank you!"

"What is this chivalrous display here?" a small, old lady said next to Izuku.

"Who-?" Izuku eyes widened, "Recovery Girl! The youthful hero!"

"That's me. What's seems to be your injuries?" Chiyo asked poking him with her cane.

"Broke my arms. She has a twisted ankle and her ears might still be ringing," Izuku said pointing to the brown-haired girl. "Heal her first. I've got to warn you first before you try to heal me," Izuku recommended. Chiyo rose an eyebrow but cooperated. The brown-haired girl let out a sigh of relief as her ankle mended itself.

"What's this warning now?" Recovery Girl asked.

"I know your quirk requires skin contact to work, but so does mine. If you touch me I'll gain a duplicate of your quirk," Izuku warned her.

"What? That's it? I can see why you warned me, but more people that can heal! I'll take that any day. Just come visit before you use it. I hate for you to harm someone healing them," Chiyo chuckled extending out her quirk and to kiss him. She planted one on his forearm. His bone cracked and moved. The power storage quirk forwarded the bill that would have otherwise would have been taken from Izuku.

"One question: can I use it on myself?" Izuku asked feeling another quirk pop into his quirk space. It unsurprisingly was a pill. The brown-haired girl's quirk manifested itself as a feeling rather than an object. Touching her quirk made his stomach turn a bit. The feeling was ferocity.

"No, you cannot," Chiyo said before waving goodbye.

"All applicants please report in!" Present Mic boomed over the loud speakers or in person it was hard to tell the difference.

Midoriya stood up and face the brown-haired girl, "Izuku Midoriya."

"Ochako Uraraka," she bowed and he did in return. They walked together in silence back to the staging area. Before they went there separate ways.

"I'll see you at school Uraraka-san!" Izuku said running off. She just blush madly at that statement. He was plain-looking but his muscles were sculpted from marble. A few thoughts floated around making her blush more.

Katsuki was waiting for Izuku outside of UA. "How did you do, loser?" Katsuki mocked.

"74 points. You?" Izuku replied.

"93 points. Damn right. I beat you," Katsuki gloated.

"Let's wait for the official ranking before you say that," Izuku smirked.

"Were you that quake?" Katsuki asked dryly.

Izuku looked at his arms and they still ached a bit. The bones were healed but the muscle was still recovering from the reverb. "Yeah I was. I went a little over board. Broke both of my damn arms from the force," Izuku clenched his fist.

"You fucker. You broke ALL the glass from the skyscrapers in my testing ground. Had to spend a minute dodging all that fucking glass," Katsuki cursed thinking about how far ahead he could have gotten if that hadn't happened.

"I just had to be the hero and go save someone. Obliterated the mech, most of the nearby buildings, and left myself deaf for a minute or two," Izuku chuckled thinking about the silliness of the whole thing.

"You destroyed one of those giant fuckers?!" Katsuki asked a bit of rage in his eyes.

"Yup. Didn't even need my extra powers. You probably could to," Izuku shrugged.

"Full power for me doesn't shake the ground like that," Katsuki pointed out.

"I didn't say I didn't go all out. I hit that mech with the most powerful blast I could muster," Izuku cupped his hand above his head imitating the pose he took earlier.

Katsuki analyzed his stance and went 'Tch'. "If you close your fingers more of the explosion would have been directed up. With open fingers like that I would spread out at half potency. That's why the buildings around you got destroyed," Katsuki explained making the proper stance.

"Oh, right, our hands are the channel. Less area to spread out; the more it focuses," Izuku rubbed his chin committing that to memory.

"Midoriya-sanJ!" Uraraka yelled from the school's entrance. She sprinted to catch up to them.

"Uraraka-san?" Izuku called out turning to see her.

"Who's this round face?" Katsuki clicked his tongue.

"I saved her in the practical," Izuku said to just Katsuki.

"Ah, should I call you the knight in shining armor then?" Katsuki joked.

"How did you guys get out so quickly?" she asked catching her breath.

"Well, round face when you're as great as us. They just knew we passed," Katsuki boasted.

Izuku shot his friend a look and sighed, "We had finished all the paperwork pre-hand and they let us go right away."

"Was there some optional paperwork of something?" she asked.

"Yeah. They were in a separate form. It was some quirk garbage," Katsuki hand waved.

Uraraka groaned before looking Izuku straight in the eyes. "Thank you for saving me!" she bowed while blushing furiously.

Izuku blushed feeling like this was some kind of confession, "I, um, your welcome?"

"I'll see you in class, Midoriya-san," she said walking past them.

"What was that?" Katsuki asked.

"I don't know. Never had someone thank me before," Izuku shrugged. His phone suddenly vibrated. He pulled it out and read the message.

Wrench: How'd it go?! Did you feel that explosion? We had to reset the whole workshop after that.

"Who's that?" Katsuki asked rising an eyebrow.

"Oh, Hatsume-san. She was that mechanic I was helping," Izuku replied texting back.

I: It went great! I was that explosion, sorry!

Katsuki narrowed his gaze. Rage and anger set in, "Is she your support?"

"I bet she'll be at UA so she's be everyone's support," Izuku retorted.

Wrench: That registered on the Richter scale! Are you okay?!

I: I broke my arms but I'm fine now.

Izuku looked up to see Katsuki walking off. The green-haired boy frowned.

Wrench: Only you would say that so casually.

I: I'll talk to you later. I think I pissed off Katsuki.

Wrench: Oh, no!

He locked his phone and rushed after his friend.

"Katsuki, are you okay?" Izuku asked knowing what the answer would be.

"Fine enough," Katsuki replied glaring at Izuku.

"I can tell you're pissed," Izuku got in front of his friend and crossed his arms.

"If you don't move I'm going to punch you in the face," Katsuki was dead serious. Izuku sighed and dropped his arms to the side. "I'll see you at school then," Izuku shrugged running ahead.

\- At Mei's Workshop -

Izuku had cleaned up the entire shop and boxed as much as he could. For once he knew what the floor boards looked like. He marveled at the fact that there was floor under all the junk and parts. The green-haired teen was waiting for his girlfriend to get back. It wasn't a question if she passed or not; it was whether it would take all day.

The door slammed open. Hatsume's clothes were all black from soot. She looked tired. "Wow, that looks like they put you through the ringer," Izuku commented closing up the last box.

"I got in! I got in!" She jumped at him. She knocked him over and they were on the floor.

"Ow, ow, that hurt," Izuku replied trying to keep his arms from her.

"Oh, right I forgot! Sorry, babe," she said kissing his cheek.

"Its fine. I got in too," Izuku stated.

"What you know already? I thought the hero course had to wait until the week was over?" Mei asked sitting on the floor next to him.

"I scored 74 points. Katsuki got 93 so I'm in if I think about the extra parts of the course," Izuku smirked clenching his fist.

"Extra parts?" Mei asked genuinely curious.

"There was a giant robot that was worth nothing. I thought it was odd that would be a part of the test. Why have something we have to avoid? I guessed it was because in real situations there are powerful villains that should be avoided if you don't have a compatible quirk. But when someone was under the rubble I realize what it really was about. They had picked a place with the most people to deploy the robot. It was a test to see if anyone had heroic qualities," Izuku explained before continuing, "And guess who has heroic qualities." He pointed his thumbs at himself.

Mei couldn't help by giggle and smile. She gripped him into a hug, "I'm so glad what we got in!"

He squeezed her back, "Me too. This is like a dream come true." She kissed him on the lips. No matter how many times it happened it just felt too surreal.

"I hope you don't get too mad I cleaned up your whole area," Izuku said gesturing to the boxes.

"No, actually that helps a lot. I figured I should pack up and see if the school will take all of my scrapped projects and parts," Mei stated seeing the only thing out was his hero costume parts. She knew she had to submit them for his suit. Power-Loader-sensei had pulled her aside after passing her and asked about it. She had told him that she had been working on it for months and what kind of quirk that Izuku had. It was a challenge to develop for and even harder to make it universally applicable. But Izuku had found a way.

"Did you tell your parents yet?" Izuku asked her. She huffed and looking around annoyed. "I'll take that as a 'No'," He said pulling her onto his lap. Izuku gently made her look at him. "Go spend the next few weeks with them. You need to reconnect. They have a right to now," Izuku gave her an unwavering look.

She huffed, "Okay, I will. Would you come with me?"

"Nice, try. I have a very protective mother to go to. She's probably dying to know how it went. I bet your parents will be thrilled to see you. Especially, because you look better," Izuku retorted.

"So I'm pretty now?" Mei smirked caressing his cheek.

"You're the most, beautiful pink-haired girl I've ever laid eyes on," Izuku kissed her.

"Thank you," she said breaking away. He stood up picking her up in the process. She was in his arms bridal style. "I've never get used to that," Mei commented resting her head on his shoulder. He walked over to the cot and set her down gently.

"Go in the morning. If you still can't do it come get me," Izuku offered.

"Aren't you going to tuck me in?" she asked pouting with a hint of seduction.

Izuku chuckled, "As much as I'd love that. You are not tempting me before I turn 16."

"So what I'm hearing is that I've only got to wait a few months," she smirked pulling him down for a kiss.

"We'll see about that when we get there," Izuku smiled before leaving her.

\- Midoriya Household -

"Mom, I'm home," Izuku yelled when he entered. His mother stood up from the couch and crossed her arms.

Oh, no, he was going to get it. "Where were you?!"

"I was at Hatsume's place. Why did I miss anything?" he replied. That's when he saw All Might's thin form sitting on the couch. His mind went into panic mode and then into why mode.

"Toshinori-san, is going to be one of your teachers and said that he'd like to personally talk to you. He's worried about your quirk," Inko answered worry plastered all over her face.

This meant two things: One, he was in officially now. Two, he'd have to reveal more of his quirk to his mother. He had never really fully explained it to her. She knew he could use other people's quirks, but thought it was temporary. He only let her keep that delusion because he was afraid on how his own mother would feel about him.

"H-hello, Toshinori-sensei," he said bowing.

All Might waved off the gesture. "Mrs. Midoriya you might want to sit for this," Yagi said frowning.

Izuku and Inko came into the living area. "I can explain better. I'd rather you not Toshinori-sensei," Izuku requested. All Might gestured for him to continue. "Mom, I sort of lied to you all those years ago. My quirk actually allows me to completely copy another person's quirk. I get to use it as if I was born with it. I'm sorry for lying, but I was so scared of it when I was younger," Izuku explained.

Inko was more taken back by the lie than the truth, but she would be lying if she wasn't a bit scared of a power like that. "That makes so much more sense about Katsuki's quirk and mine," Inko admitted.

"I also have quite a few other people's quirk now. Including Toshinori-sensei's quirk," Izuku admitted. This fact caused Inko to turn to All Might. She was about to apologize, but he waved her off.

"Just how many do you have now?" All Might asked wondering about the answer.

The green-haired teen held up six fingers. He then named them dropping a finger for each one, "Weak Telekinesis, Explosions, Power Storage, Zoom, Zero Gravity, and Heal."

All Might recognized that last one. He'd have to talk to Chiyo about it. "I'm here to ask for a blood sample. This is simply a security measure considering just how powerful your quirk is," Toshinori deadpanned.

"I understand. UA is afraid of the villain potential involved with me and considering my history I could easily be the biggest risk," Izuku grimaced staring All Might down.

For once in All Might's life he felt determination greater than his own. This young man's pride would never break. He could never be a villain. But there were questions being asked. People making comparisons to history. Someones wanting security. Others wanted to know if they're related. Since All Might was his only contact point it was safe to assume he'd be willing to cooperate if asked by the number one hero. Nothing about this felt right and all of it left a bad taste in his mouth.

"Look I'm-," All Might started before getting cut off by Izuku, "Let's just get this done with. You'll be my instructor soon enough, so we can talk more then." All Might nodded and opened a suitcase on the coffee table. It was a syringe gun mostly likely setup to pull instead of shot. The skeleton of man walked over to Izuku.

His arms were still exposed from the entrance exam. This is when Inko noticed the slight discoloration of his arms. She gasped, "Izuku what happened?"

"I let out a blast so big it vaporized a 10-story mech and wrecked the buildings next to it," Izuku answered with no emotion at all.

"Izuku, I understand that you've had you convictions challenged and know that I will always be here for you," Inko offered.

"I relish the challenge. Let people look down on me. Let them think of me as a villain. But when the cards are down and no one's left I will still be standing willing to protect everyone in my vision and stop _any_ villain that crosses my path. I understand that I have to put in 10 times more work to create my public image and maintain a positive one. I won't have the luxury of making mistakes. I won't have the luxury that villains will get blamed for the damage or the quirks being used. I have to be conscious of my power moment to moment or I might use the wrong one. Worse if I get an incapable quirk and suddenly I'm a liability on the scene," Izuku ranted his anger threatening to boil over. While he was monologuing the boy had used telekinesis to nudge a vein in his closer to the surface. All Might knew he would be a challenge, but he wasn't prepared for his student being even more aware of his own problems than anyone could have guessed.

Izuku took a deep breath, "I'm sorry." He walked off to the bathroom and got a band-aid. He applied it to his arm via telekinesis. The teen looked to the two standing in the living room. He decided he wasn't hungry that night and went to bed.

"I'm sorry, Midoriya-san. I never realized that the problem was so deeply rooted in society. If your son becomes a hero-" It was Inko's turn to interrupt All Might.

"He will become a hero. I have no doubt in him. I only ask that you make sure to keep him humble. As he continues to grow and gain quirks. I doubt you're school will be able to train his quirk any longer. Just make sure his personality and goals remain in tact. The rest he can figure out himself," Inko stated sitting down, "Now that you have your blood. Please leave, Toshinori-san."

That was all. Inko ended any further dialogue they would have. UA would have to tread carefully now. They had started off on the wrong foot and it would take a miracle to gain her trust again. All Might left and felt drained. He'd have to report all of that back to the administration and to the police. They didn't have a sample of _his_ blood, but if they ever did then answers would be had.


	5. The Chosen

Izuku was laying on his bed relaxing for once. It had been a hectic winter vacation. Mei was with her parents and they were trying to catch up all the missing time with their now support class daughter.

A knock came at the door, "Izuku. You got a letter in the mail from UA." While he had known he was in it would be interesting to read the acceptance letter. The teen got up and opened his door. His mother handed him the letter. On the spot he used a bit of telekinesis to slice open the top. He pulled out a disc. Izuku rose one eyebrow and looked at his mother.

They went into the living room. He set the device down on the coffee table. Tapping the top of it a holographic image started to play.

It was All Might in a pinstriped suit. He had a microphone. "Hello, Izuku Midoriya, this is your official acceptance message into UA. You might be wondering about the entrance exam and just exactly how we were judging it. Well I have to say-" All Might started before a hand showed up on screen urging him to get on with it. All Might whispered, "I have 35 more of these to get to! Okay I'll keep this short." The large man cleared his throat, "Of all the applicants there that day you were one of the two that were rewarded for truly being a hero." The camera swept to a scoreboard. Izuku saw his score.

Izuku Midoriya – 132 points : 74 Villain, 58 Rescue

Katsuki Bakugo – 93 points : 93 Villain

Uchako Uraraka – 72 points : 40 Villain, 32 Rescue

These were the only ones he could read before the camera panned away from the board. "Congratulations, Midoriya, I think that was a performance worthy of being the Symbol of Peace. You inspired another to act heroically. I'll see you at UA." The hologram died after All Might gave a thumbs up. Tears of joy were streaming down Inko's face. Izuku was doing his best to keep his composure but he broke as well. Tears streamed down his face.

His mother brought him into a hug, "You got in. You were the best too, no less."

"Thank you. This is like a dream come true. I'm going to be a hero, Mom," Izuku said sniffling. His mother broke from the hug. She caressed his cheek.

"I know and you're going to worry me sick," Inko admitted smiling and crying.

"Don't worry, mom. I can look after myself. I'm more worried about my classmates than anything right now," Izuku admitted back.

"Why's that?" Inko asked.

"What if they find out about my quirk? What if they are scared of me? I want to have friends and be recognized for who I am," Izuku pleaded.

"Honey, I'm sure you'll make friends. You got a girlfriend all on your own. I think once people let you in they will love being around you," Inko assured him.

"Thank you, mom. That means a lot to me," Izuku said wiping the tears away. "I'm going to send a letter to see if I can ask to modify the school uniform a bit."

"You're going to ask for gloves aren't you?" Inko said finally done crying.

"You betcha. I want people to know that I'm aware of what my quirk is," Izuku proudly stated.

"Alright. Hop to it then," Inko commanded pushing him up and off the couch. She couldn't help but smile for her son.

Izuku spent an hour or two wording the letter. He wanted to be polite, but straightforward. By the point of frustration trying to balance the two he gave up and went with purely straightforward.

\- First Day of Class – Katsuki's POV-

Katsuki and his green-haired friend arrived early as planned. The blonde-haired had done his best to prepare for this day. What he didn't expect was to lose to the Izuku. The green-haired twerp had actually beaten his total score and not by a little. It was by over 40%. This meant to Katsuki that if want to be the better hero of the two he'd have to put in 40% more work that Izuku. This was a problem. The twerp's work ethic was nothing to scoff at. All of this gave him a bad taste.

He liked his friend, hell basically his only friend. But if he wanted to grow and become his own hero it would have to be without Izuku. The two teens entered the grand school. There was a floor map in the lobby. Katsuki gave it one glance before knowing where to go. Izuku spent a minute or two looking it over before catching up with up the blonde.

"Looking for where you girlfriend will be?" Katsuki smirked hoping to get a rise out of him. He hadn't officially told Katsuki yet, but you'd have to brain dead to miss the signs.

"I, ah.." Izuku stumbled over his words. This delighted the blonde. He'd have to come clean. "Yes, I was. I sort of forgot to tell you," Izuku finished rubbing the back of his neck. His friend had the easiest facial expressions to read.

"Don't think this shit makes ya better than me," Katsuki retorted. The blonde chastised himself. He had the tendency to just say shit with thinking about. Most of the time, it was brutally honest and folks hated that shit.

Izuku sighed. Oh no not another lecture from his friend. "It doesn't."

Katsuki rose an eyebrow at that. That wasn't the expected response and the straightforward statement was meant to hide more buried issues. The blonde wasn't one to care much. It also was none of his business. He decided not to pursue the subject. "Well, were here. Let's see what kind of freaks we got stuck with," Katsuki chuckled slamming open the sliding door.

There were only two students already sat and neither of them flinched. Based on the white-haired kids stoic face and bored expression he must have been one of the recommendations. The other student was a prim and proper chick that had matured well past her years. Katsuki only gave her one glance before finding a seat. He choose a spot near the window. The girl was in the front middle and the white-haired guy was off to the right near the back.

That was when Izuku didn't something Katsuki hadn't expected: introduced himself. The green-haired teen stood at the front of class. "Izuku Midoriya, the next Symbol of Peace," his friend said bowing. That was a bold move to pull. The girl stood up and returned his gesture.

"Momo Yaoyorozu," she bowed. The white-haired guy glared at Izuku but did not make an effort to introduce himself. A bit rude, but expected.

"Yaoyorozu. Like the Yaoyorozu hero family?" Izuku asked smirking? Katsuki was genuinely interested in where this was going.

Momo hesitated before nodding. _Well hot damn a legacy_, Katsuki thought. What came next surprised the blonde. "Alright, princess, I hope we can get along in the future," Izuku bowed once more before taking a seat behind Katsuki. He didn't have to see her face to know she was blushing at that. It was just too forward not to get that sort of reaction.

"White gloves? Trying to be stylish or some shit like that?" Katsuki whispered pointing to the gloves Izuku was wearing.

Izuku made no attempt to whisper back, "You know why I'm wearing these Katsuki. I want to limit my quirk not expand it." This caught the white-haired kid's attention. His mind must be racing trying to figure out Izuku. Which was for the best. Even Katsuki saw the potential danger that Izuku's quirk possessed.

The blonde shrugged and rested his feet on his desk.

\- Izuku's POV -

Many of the other students showed up early. One guy in particular decided to pick a verbal fight with Katsuki and his choice of lounging. Izuku shrugged and figured it would sort itself out. He had bought several new notes books. Everyone here had a quirk and he was going to catalog all of them. It was a minute to the bell and Midoriya had sketched out many of his fellow classmates.

"Katsuki, just comply. Class is about to start," Izuku stated still drawing his classmates. His friend grumbled before complying.

"Thank you. I'm Tenya Iida," the tall teen bowed to Izuku.

Izuku looked up at the man. The last name was familiar. _He's from a hero family too_, Izuku made a mental note. "Izuku Midoriya, next Symbol of Peace," Izuku stated. The whole class fell silent hearing him. The green-haired teen looked around seeing a combination of shock and amusement. And one invisible girl he obviously couldn't read. He added a mental note for that one.

A yellow sleeping bag opened the door. It somehow shimmied over to the podium. A man emerged from the sleeping bag. "What a well mannered class. Exactly on time no less," the tired teacher stated. He looked like he hadn't slept in months, which was a bit contradictory considering he came in wearing a sleeping bag.

"I'm your homeroom teacher, Shota Aizawa, we're going to start off things quick," Aizawa announced smirking. "Back in middle school you all took tests to determine your physical aptitude. Those tests are inaccurate. They cut out quirks from the equation to get 'standard' guidelines. Governments still has a way to go before quirks are recognized as being crucial to early development. Anyway, we are going to correct that problem. Today I'm going to have all of you take the 8 tests with your quirks in mind," Aizawa explained.

"Now get changed into your gym uniforms and head outside," Aizawa declared already heading out. The whole class quickly followed his orders.

\- Practice Field – Uraraka's POV -

The gym clothes were nice and breezy. They weren't too tight either. Izuku and a girl name Momo had beaten most of the class out to the field. It looked like they had just ended a pretty serious conversation. Ochako wondered what it was about. She knew about his quirk but not many did. It was probably best that way.

The homeroom teacher freaked her out a bit. Mostly cuz he looked tired and had this intense aura about him. "Midorya, what was your best through in middle school," The teacher said tossing him a ball.

"47 meters," Izuku replied pulling off his right hand glove.

"Now throw it will your quirk," Aizawa asked. Uraraka panicked briefly. Izuku's friend, Katsuki she thought she heard, knelt down. Uraraka followed his lead knowing what would happen next. Izuku shrugged and then he turned serious.

The green-haired teen wound up his arm. Green lightning flowed from his arm. A few of the other students got the hint from Uraraka and Katsuki to brace for impact. Even though she had seen the limit break ability the force would still be astonishing.

A green explosion rocketed the ball into the distance. A shockwave slammed the ground from the blast. The ball had broken the sound barrier albeit only temporarily. A few of the girls and smaller guys got knocked over by the blast. For Izuku that throw was just a normal run-of-the-mill use of his quirk(s). Uraraka felt a bit scared of power like that.

Aizawa whistled, "1,252 meters. That's one of the more impressive scores I've seen from first years in awhile. Now that's an example of what I mean by using your quirks. In these next tests you can use your quirk anyway you see if to complete the test."

A guy with red spiky hair shouted, "This will be fun!"

That comment seemed to set Aizawa off, "If you think this is going to be all fun and games, then I'll add a condition. The person in last place is going to be expelled."

Panic set in for Uraraka. She wasn't the most athletic and compared to some of the other students her chances looked bad.

\- Aizawa's POV -

_These kids don't seem to understand the gravity or importance of being here yet. I'll just have to beat it into them then, _the pro thought eyeing the class. Most of the students were trying to figure out how to use their quirk and complete the mundane activities. Nearly half the class though had far more than a basic grasp of their quirk.

There was one kid that the pro had to watch in particular. A one, Izuku Midoriya, a student with a quirk so ridiculous sounding Aizawa didn't believe it at first. But now seeing it first hand he knew it was the real deal. Quirk Duplication the thought of such a powerful quirk gave him a chill up his spine. However, if Aizawa had learned one thing by watching the kid, it was this: he was determined to be a hero. Well in his words the Symbol of Peace. As if such a goal was easy. Aizawa never liked the idea of the symbol, but couldn't argue its effectiveness.

One thing was certain, heroes should count themselves lucky that Izuku is on our side. That power in the wrong hands would be devastating.

It was interesting to see the original user of explosions, Katsuki Bakugo, outperform Izuku at basically every competition where both of them could use their matching quirks. It also seemed like that green explosion was a combo quirk and not his quirk's influence.

Aizawa's Notes:

Midoriya: 50 meter dash – 4.22 secs; Grip strength – 115kg; Standing long jump – cleared. Long Throw – 1252m. Most of other test he was near the top. Izuku is basically in peak physical condition.

Bakugo: 50 meter dash – 3.98 secs; Grip strength – 82kg; Standing long jump – cleared. Long Throw – 1083m. Again top end performer. Scores to Izuku were nearly the same. Must have trained together for an extensive amount of time.

Uraraka: 50 meter dash – 7.12 secs; Grip strength – 35kg; Standing long jump – cleared; Long Throw – infinity. Low end performer but understands the real world applications of her quirk.

Todoroki: 50 meter dash – 5.63 secs; Grip strength – 83kg; Standing long jump – cleared; Long Throw – 483m. Has considerable control over his the ice half of his quirk. Did not show any attempt to use the fire half even though it would have helped. Top physical conditioning.

Iida: 50 meter dash – 3.02 secs; Grip strength – 86kg; Standing long jump – cleared; Long Throw er Kick – 592m. Powerful speed enhancing quirk understand. In great physical condition.

Koda: 50 Meter dash – 6.95 secs; Grip strength – 105kg; Standing long jump – 55%; Long Throw bird drop? – 620m. Has a large strong body but is afraid to use it. Quirk is odd but useful in a naturalist setting.

Tokoyami: 50 meter dash – 6.75 secs; Grip strength – 53kg; Standing long jump – 40%; Long Throw – 635m. Relies too much on his quirk. Low level of physical prowess.

Shoji: 50 meter dash – 6.80 secs; Grip strength – 540kg; Standing long jump – 45%; Long Throw – 280m. Is physically fit to near peak. Quirk has limited combat uses.

Kirishima: 50 meter dash – 6.72 secs; Grip strength – 77kg; Standing long jump – 53%; Long Throw – 195m. Quirk doesn't augment strength much. Physically fit enough to be mid-high tier.

Sato: 50 meter dash – 5.96 secs; Grip strength – 322kg; Standing long jump – 94%; Long Throw – 360m. Quirk has a fairly short duration for a subtle return. A small cooldown period between uses.

Jirou: 50 meter dash – 7.03 secs; Grip strength – 29kg; Standing long jump – 60%; Long Throw – 102m. In low physical condition. Quirk has limited combat applications.

Sero: 50 meter dash – 6.72 secs; Grip strength – 73kg; Standing long jump – cleared; Long Throw – 310m. Significant understanding of quirk application and limits. Middle level physical fitness.

Aoyama: 50 meter dash – 5.51 secs; Grip strength – 58kg; Standing long jump – cleared; Long Throw/Blast – 340m. Low physical condition. Quirk is fairly powerful but seems to have severe recoil.

Yaoyorozu: 50 meter dash – 5.32 secs; Grip strength – 71kg; Standing long jump – cleared; Long Throw – 612m. Has exceptional use of her quirk. High end physical conditioning.

Ojiro: 50 meter dash – 5.49 secs; Grip strength – 108kg; Standing long jump – cleared; Long Throw – 203m. Peak physical conditioning. Has excellent incorporating of his quirk into everything he does.

Asui: 50 meter dash – 5.58 secs; Grip strength – 32kg; Standing long jump – cleared; Long Throw er tongue-pult – 326m. Mutant-type that understand for well how to use her quirk.

Ashido: 50 meter dash – 5.22 secs; Grip strength – 33kg; Standing long jump – 60%; Long Throw – 93m. Versatile if not deadly quirk. Has a significant grasp over how to apply the quirk. Middle tier phyiscal condition.

Hagakure: 50 meter dash – 7.05 secs; Grip strength – 22kg; Standing long jump – 45%; Long Throw – 45m. Low end physical conditioning. Quirk is for stealth only.

Mineta: 50 meter dash – 7.20 secs; Grip strength – 36kg; Standing long jump – 30%; Long Throw – 38m. How did they make it in?! Only excelled at one event but otherwise not hero material!

Kaminari: 50 meter dash – 6.99 secs; Grip strength – 65kg; Standing long jump – 57%; Long Throw after second try, fried the first one – 42m. Low end physical prowess. Heavily reliant on quirk to solve problems.

It was underhanded of Aizawa to try this but he had to test his quirk against the teen's quirk. Being the teacher he decided to make Izuku take the long throw test over again. Before the moment of release Aizawa activated his quirk. Much to his annoyance nothing happened. Izuku was immune to his quirk. Suddenly, a whole world of possibilities died. He didn't know if was due to the nature of Izuku's quirk or because there were too many active quirks. Nevertheless, this was a problem he'd have to report about later.

He had been jotting down notes about a few of the unused quirks and other notes about the ones with powerful, versatile quirks. Momo Yaoyorozu despite having a less than useful combat quirk managed to outperform and surpass her fellow student using wit and ingenuity. Her quirk was beyond versatile, but required a sound mind and time to function. In a real scenario, she would most likely be a liability but then again Aizawa has been wrong in the past.

After each student had finished the final test. Aizawa tallied up the scores and sent them to a digital board on in the field (highest to lowest performer):

Momo Yaoyorozu

Katsuki Bakugo

Izuku Midoriya

Shoto Todoroki

Tenya Iida

Kumikage Tokoyami

Mezo Shoji

Mashirao Ojiro

Eijiro Kirishima

Mina Ashido

Ochako Uraraka

Koji Koda

Rikido Sato

Tsuyu Asui

Yuga Aoyama

Denki Kaminari

Kyoka Jirou

Toru Hagakure

Minoru Mineta

Several members of the class panicked. This brought more joy to Aizawa than it should have. He shrugged better tell them, "It was a logical ruse. I made that rule so you all of you would give it your all."

Momo spoke up before anyone else, "Oh, I thought you guys knew that? It was pretty obvious."

Izuku chuckled at the comment. "Look I beat ya again," Katsuki pointed out. The green-haired teen waved him off.

_A light rivalry. That's good_, Aizawa thought watching the two. "Alright, let's pack it up and get back to class!"

\- Izuku's POV -

The rest of day was pretty normally. Like really normal. English, history, mathematics, and sciences were before lunch. Math and science were pushed to after lunch due to Aizawa's spur of the moment 'lesson'.

It was lunch time. Izuku took a seat at one of the many tables. Uraraka, Iida, Katsuki, and Kirishima took spots next to him. Katsuki was across from him with Kirishima to his side. Uraraka was to Izuku's left and Iida to his right. The hero to be wasn't used to so many people next to him. "Aizawa-sensei really put us through the ringer, huh?" Izuku commented trying to break the ice.

Uraraka was the first to reply, "I know right! I was so sure I'd get canned." She chuckled drinking some kind of juice.

"It wasn't that bad really," Katsuki commented earning an elbow to the side from Izuku. "Okay maybe it was a bit unfair to do that on day one. But this is UA after all and if you want to be the best then you have to go the distance," Katsuki shrugged digging into his lunch.

"Well said. So far this is what I imagined UA would be like, but I've got three years to determine if this was the right choice," Iida chimed in drinking orange juice.

"It is. UA is the school of champions and of the greatest heroes. Well, it will be once we graduate from here," Izuku declared.

The rest of them smiled and looked at Izuku. Kirishima spoke up, "That was manly as hell! I see why you like this guy Bakugo."

Katsuki palmed the guys face and pushed him over, "It ain't like that. He's the only one that's good enough to be my rival."

"Yeah, sure, whatever you say, man," Kirishima shrugged getting back to the table.

"He's mostly right. After all do you think this guy could make any friends," Izuku chuckled patting Katsuki shoulder from across the table. The death glare from Katsuki spoke to how he felt about that one.

Uraraka whispered to Izuku, "You really pissed him off with that one."

Izuku whispered back, "I know. He's kinda sensitive right now."

Uraraka gasped quietly, "What did you do?"

He whispered back, "Why do you blame me? I don't have the slightest clue."

Uraraka sighed and shook her head. The rest of the group sat in silence for the remainder of lunch.

\- Outside UA after class -

Izuku was cleaning up his books and prepping his backpack. Katsuki had gone ahead. He was in a bad mode after all. Iida and Uraraka stayed behind. "Midorya-san, did you ever get a chance to work with my quirk?" Uraraka asked standing next to him.

"I've been a bit afraid to actually. It's Zero Gravity right?" Izuku asked knowing the answer.

"Yup that's my quirk. Looking for a crash course?" Uraraka asked smiling a bit. Iida was looking confused.

"He has your quirk? Permanently?" Iida crooked an eyebrow.

Izuku sighed, "Yes. Forever. But I know next to nothing about it so I've kept it off just to prevent any problems."

"So what you just touch someone and you get there quirk?" Iida asked in unison with Uraraka, "You can shut them off!?"

"Sort of. I can't copy most mutant quirks. Also yes I can. 'Passive' quirks can't be shut off. 'Active' quirks can be," Izuku explained draping his backpack over his shoulder.

"I'm a mutant-type which means you can't get mine," Iida stated nodding.

"Bingo," he turned to Uraraka, "If you don't have anything planned I'll take you up on your offer."

She blushed not realizing he'd actually accept. "I thought you liked to learn the quirks," she assumed.

"Oh, I do. But I've got to do a session with Recovery Girl too so I'd prefer the help," Izuku admitted.

"That's 4 quirks so far. I might have misjudged your character," Iida apologized.

"Ah, don't worry about it. Everyone does. I've been trying to _avoid_ gaining quirks. I'm not power hungry or so deranged that I think I need all that power," Izuku smirked leading the two.

"Do you know a park or place we can practice quirks without too many prying eyes?" Uraraka asked.

"I do know a place, but I don't know if she'll let us use it," Izuku rubbed his chin in thought.

"O-okay, I'll just follow you," Uraraka replied.

By this point they were exited the building. Hatsume was waiting for them. "Izuku! How did your first day go?!" she hugged him. This caused the two with Izuku to feel a bit awkward.

"It was great, Mei. I didn't see you at lunch," Izuku asked. Mei pulled away from him.

"They have us with the business class so we can 'socialize'," Mei said making air quotes. She looked at the two heroes, "Mei Hatsume."

"Tenya Iida," Tenya bowed. "Ochako Uraraka," Ochako bowed.

"Nice to meet Izuku's classmates. I'm your support specialist," Mei beamed at them.

"Did you finish the suit?" Izuku asked continuing to leave. Mei oddly enough was walking backward keeping pace with them.

"I did. It'll be ready tomorrow. I hear from power-loader this will be your first time donning it so kick ass," Mei chuckled. Mei took a moment to give Uraraka a once over. She was way more attractive than Mei had first thought.

"That's great news. Do you mind if we stop by your workshop and put in some quirk work?" Izuku asked Mei while pointing between him and Uraraka. His girlfriend was about to glare, but thought against it. This was an excellent opportunity to scope out the competition.

"Sure. If it for training her quirk then I'll allow it," Mei said smiling. At the front gate Iida parted ways and said his goodbyes for the night.

Uraraka knew she was the third wheel, but Izuku did his best to make her feel comfortable and apart of the conversations. She might be his friend on day and he didn't want to create a divide between them.

\- At Mei's Workshop -

Since they had packed up shop. Izuku had decided to furnish the now studio. It had a couch, coffee table, and a TV on a stand. Her cot was in the corner of the room. The work bench was still there. Mei sat on the couch and sipped tea. Uraraka and Izuku sat on the floor.

"Alright activate it," Uraraka commanded. She was more stern than normal. She must take her quirk very seriously.

Izuku closed his eyes. Turning off a quirk was simple it felt like you were just saying 'stop' to the quirk. But turning it one meant he had to go within his quirk space and touch it. Her ferocity coursed into his body. There was more passion in her body than meets the eyes.

"Uraraka-san, why do you want to be a hero," Izuku asked opening his eyes. His intense gaze made her blush. It wasn't a very intimate question, but one that a hero must face before committing to it.

"I don't know if I want to tell you. Its kind of a selfish reason," Uraraka replied fumbling with her fingers.

"There are many reasons heroes become what they are. I'm sure yours isn't that bad," Izuku assured.

"I-I'm in for the money. I.. I want my parents to live a good life off me," Uraraka stuttered a bit.

Izuku nodded. It was a noble reason after all. "I think that's noble of you. It sounds like you just want to help them out," Izuku pointed out.

"No, no its not. Its selfish," she denied. Izuku smirked before him were years of doubt. It bothered him to see someone with so much passion doubt themselves.

Before the tension grew too much, "How about your quirk? It's on. I see the pads how do they work?"

Her passion returned, "Oh, its easy really. When all five pads from one hand touch an object it loses all the gravity being applied to it."

"What about inertia?" Mei asked from the couch.

"Inertia?" Oraraka asked looking at her.

"Its the tendency for objects to continue when outside forces are no longer being applied to them. If you removed gravity which keeps us on the ground then the inertia from the spinning of earth would launch you tangentially off the crust. But that's not what your quirk does," Mei pointed out.

Izuku reached over and activated her quirk on her. Her body started to float. She waved around her arms trying to get herself stable.

"Fascinating. Its more like Force Nullification than anything else," Izuku commented feeling her weight acting on his stomach and nervous system. He poked her gently; she floated away panicking slightly. She no longer had the power to stop the weightlessness.

Mei was intrigued too. She ran over to her workbench and grabbed her notebook. "I want to test something. Release," he said touching all the pads. He then found this wasn't actually necessary. Two contact points between his hand would have sufficed. Uraraka would have fallen to the floor, but Izuku picked her up out of the air. He set her down and walked outside.

Uraraka followed. Mei came out with a device. She connected one diode to his head and another to his chest. "We used these to determine the amount of recoil his explosions cause. These are very sensitive. Right now he's being affect by gravity and a weak magnetic force. See," Mei explained showing Uraraka a tablet. It had half a dozen graphs on it. Mei pointed to the ones she was referring to.

"Test number one: Touch me, Uraraka-san," Izuku instructed. The tone and way he phrased it made her blush madly. It was like something out of a romance movie or novel. She walked over to him and made five points of contact with his arm.

If it wasn't for the crazy readings on the tablet she would have chastised Izuku. "What in the world... No forces are being applied to him. Zero," Mei marveled.

Izuku let loose a few explosions to orientate himself. Every explosion was picked up on the tablet. "Izuku, this is even more interesting. The forces you're applying are absolute. No dampening from gravity or magnetism. Except for air resistance you could move as fast as powerful the explosion you used. Flight would be a cinch with this," Mei opened a few windows and start to input code and instructions.

"Release me. Test two: stop me," Izuku instructed.

"Release! Wait stop you?!" Uraraka panicked. Izuku shot into the sky after getting gravity restored. He'd have to relearn how to fly thanks to Uraraka's quirk.

He swooped down and came right at her. She panicked sidestepped him and slapped him across the face. Then her quirk activated and he came to a slow but quick halt. "Mei how much force was nullified right there?" Izuku asked floating. Using his explosions he forced himself to the ground properly.

He couldn't stand as there was no gravity, but he floated over to Mei. A red hand print was on his face.

"All of it... That's a monstrous quirk," Mei commented. Izuku then tried something. He touched himself with his hand activating her quirk. He then released his own releasing both of them.

_The effect doesn't care where it came from. So regardless the ender it will cancel. Alright new test,_ Izuku planned.

"Test number three: I'm going to touch you," Izuku declared walking up to Uraraka. She felt bad for slapping him so hard, but her arm stung from intercepting some of that flight force. A deep blush came over her when he got close.

Mei was about to yell at him, but he reached out and touched Uraraka's arm. The brunette floated. "Cancel it," Izuku commanded. Uraraka rose an eyebrow but nodded. Taking a deep breath she called out for release.

He felt his hold break. Slowly, through all of this his stomach was beginning to turn. Very strong, very persistent nausea.

Uraraka was so happy to find out more about her quirk. Zero Gravity was what she thought, but in reality her quirk was Force Nullification. It was leagues more powerful. A real hero quirk. Without even knowing it she had reached out and hugged him. "Thank you!" she said breaking away. Her phone buzzed.

After checking it briefly, "Looks like I need to go." Izuku was thinking about reaching out to her, but thought better of it. That was all he could do for her today. After Uraraka left, Mei's clicked her tongue.

Hopefully, she didn't learn that Katsuki. "What?" Izuku asked looking back at his girlfriend.

"I know she's the originator for that quirk of yours, but does she have to be so cute?" Mei asked feeling insecure.

Izuku sighed and walked over to her. He took her into a hug. She rested her head on his chest. "You don't have to worry about the girls of 1-A. I'm pretty sure I offended Yaoyorozu-san this morning. Uraraka I just want to help. She's got so much potential and she needs to realize it. Other than them I haven't spoke much to the rest of the girls," Izuku reassured her.

"I know you have pure intentions, but doesn't mean I believe they do. I saw some of your classmates and they're all cute or gorgeous," Mei retorted looking up at his eyes.

"And you're just as gorgeous and cute as any of them," he smiled at her before kissing her.

"Thank you. I just get so insecure when you're around other girls," Mei admitted. Izuku understood, Mei doesn't view herself as a woman too much. She's an inventor first and woman second.

"That's fine. I'll just have to keep telling you how beautiful you are," Izuku smiled at her. She couldn't help but smile at that.

"You should stay and spend the night," Mei asked grinning.

"On your tiny cot? Nope, I know where that goes, plus my mom would kill me," Izuku retorted.

Mei pouted, "Oh well. Your lose." The pink-haired girl kissed him one last time before breaking away. "Get going then. I'll see you in the morning," Mei stated pushing him out the door.

The door shut behind him. _That was odd, _Izuku thought before shrugging. The green-haired teen couldn't wait to be a pro hero. He could just imagine himself flying through the air stopping crime as he went. This Force Nullification quirk would be handy to have and even more so to use. The rest of his night was uneventful to say the least.


	6. To Battle - Part 1

It was their second day in class. Mostly normal day so far. But it was after lunch and heroics were about to ensue. Of all the teachers, All Might slid into the room, "I am here in a normal way!"

Several thoughts in unison disagreed with that statement. He was wearing his silver age hero costume.

Instead of his current hero suit, it was red on the torso, blue pants, a blue cape, and it had white lines trace around his triceps to his chest and then down his legs. It actually made him look smaller than his current costume.

Most of the class started to fanboy/girl over the pro hero. Izuku took this time to look around the class. A one Shoto Todoroki was not amused. He had a defiant glare on his eyes. Katsuki looked bored, but slightly more interested than before. Just about everyone else was making comments.

"As you all might have known. I have been asked to come to UA.. to teach! I'll be your hero instructor from now on!" the man set his hands on the comparatively small podium. He grabbed a remote and clicked it showing two words on screen: Battle Trial. "Today's hero exercise will be Battle Trial. This one is fairly simple," he clicked the remote to show the objective and the 2v2 teams, "The objective for the hero teams will be infiltrate the hideout and secure the bomb or the villains. For the villains there goal will be to defend the bomb until the time limit or capture the heroes. Everyone will be equipped with capture tape. If you can get it around your opponent they will be considered captured. Teams will be chosen at random."

A few student complained about having random teams until Midoriya spoke up, "In a real scenario you might not know who's going to show up to help. Its realistic to assume that you'll have to partner up with someone you know nothing about in order to fight a villain or assist during a rescue operation."

"W-well said Midoriya! That is completely correct. In live fight you might have to aid someone you've never met before. It crucial then to be adaptable and maximize quirk effectiveness even knowing very little about another person's quirk! Now get into your hero costumes and met me in ground beta!"

\- Ground Beta -

Izuku's hero outfit was like that of a combat soldier. The snap on metal guards and protection were a dark green. The rest of the suit was black. There was a thin rubber lining on his arms and his chest. His legs along with the rest of his outfit that touched his skin was a smooth cloth material. He recognized it as a typical flame retardant cloth. Mobility was good and it was relatively quick to put on. Iida looked more armored than him being some kind of medieval turbo knight. Midoriya looked like a strike commando or some kind of special operative than a student. The only thing was that he was lacking any kind of headgear, but that was probably for the best. It took away from his rather intimidating look.

Bakugo had an explosion styled hair piece, grenade gloves that definitely weren't for show, and black and red coloring for the rest of his garb.

Denki looked like a street punk and had some kind of metal device on his head. Shoji had a pretty plain looking skin tight suit.

Ojiro looked like a martial artist.

Sero had a skin tight suit and a power-suit helmet.

Mineta was a bit weird wearing what looked like diapers.

Tokoyami had a black trench coat and looked pretty cool overall.

Kirishima had a mostly exposed chest and red shade all over his uniform. It complimented his hair nicely.

Todoroki had a white jumpsuit and fake ice over the left side. The fake ice must be a statement of some kind.

Koda was fairly plain looking having a red and yellow shirt with yellow shorts.

Aoyama looked like a sparkly medieval knight. His belt had been incorporated into his costume and had similar focusing points at the knees and shoulders.

Sato actually looked like a classic super hero. His jumpsuit was yellow with white gloves and boots. He kind of resembled All Might.

"Wow, is that military grade?" Katsuki asked as they walked to ground beta. Half way they met up with the girls.

Uraraka caught Izuku's attention first since her suit was skin tight and had large pink parts attached to her suit at various points. Probably, to relieve some of that crazy nausea. It also made him realize she was much more curvy than at first glance.

Momo outfit or lack of caught the attention of several guys. Izuku chalked it up to be quirk related. It didn't leave much to the imagination, but he would not allow himself to think like that.

Jirou had a punk rocker look and would looked like special boots. They had speakers in them?

Hagakure was a pair of gloves and boots. It dawned on Izuku that meant she was basically nude, but being fully invisible meant nothing could be seen. It was a little embarrassing to think about but he pushed those thoughts aside.

Asui was one of the few costumes that Izuku thought of being legitimately cute looking. It was a neck to toe skin tight suit colored in green at the top and black leggings. She had white/tan gloves and green webbing at her feet. She looked like a frog which complimented her quirk.

Ashido had on an acid color leotard and a furry collar. It opened in the front to give the slightest of cleavage.

"Yes, it probably could be. Uraraka-san look at you," Izuku said to a somewhat flustered looking Ochako.

"I guess I should have specified if it was skin tight or not," Uraraka replied pouting a bit.

"No, I think it looks good. Gives off a space, astronaut kind of feel," Izuku stated smiling back at her.

"What? Really? That's what I was going for!" Uraraka seemed proud of herself now.

The large group of students met up with All Might in the control room for ground beta. "What a bunch of promising heroes! Now draw your teams!" The pro heroes instructed holding out a box.

The class of 20 quickly pulled numbers and sorted themselves out. The teams were:

Izuku & Ojiro, Kirishima & Shoji, Todoroki & Kaminari, Sato & Koda, Uraraka & Iida, Tokoyami & Asui, Ashido & Sero, Yaoyorozu & Hagakure, Aoyama & Bakugo, and Mineta & Jirou.

Everyone felt between good about the teams. No single team was too overpowered.

All Might then displayed on the scene which teams were against whom and which was the villain or hero. This is where the weaker team had a bit of panic. Any team with one of the big 4 would be tough to fight, but All Might wanted to show them what unadulterated success would look like.

\- Battle #1 – Heroes: Todoroki & Kaminari vs Villains: Kirishima & Shoji -

Eijiro knew this was going to be a tough battle. Todoroki despite what little he has shown gave off the aura of a total badass. Not quite as manly as Kirishima, but he was in the top 5. All Might had given the villains and heroes 10 minutes to preplan.

The best Eijiro and Shoji could come up with is: Guard the bomb. The heroes were going to be overwhelmingly strong. The bell sounded indicating the start of the match.

The local temperature fell 20 degrees. Eijiro could see his breath. Before he knew it his feet had been frozen to the ground. With the help of his hardening quirk he broke free of the ice. Shoji using raw strength broke free as well. Todoroki had casually strolled into the room. He was surprised they broke free. Eijiro rushed the white-haired boy. All he saw in his vision was white and unrelenting cold.

The bell sounded again indicating the end of the match. All Might's voice came over the speaker, "Todoroki, could you thaw them out."

Eijiro was the first to be freed. It had been a landslide victory for the heroes. They were outclassed on a level that made Kirishima in awe of Todoroki power.

The two teams got back to the control room. "Would anyone like to tell me what the villains did wrong?"

Momo rose her hand, but Izuku just spoke, "They underestimated how much range and power Ice Mage had. They should have opted for a sneak attack right off the bat as that would have been the best opportunity to attack." All Might mouth 'Ice Mage'.

"That is correct. When faced with an overwhelming power its best to strike fast and before they're aware of you. Otherwise defeat or surrender become the only options," All Might stated before continuing, "Who to you think was MVP?"

Momo spoke up first, "Clearly, Todoroki-san. He incapacitated both villains and secured the weapon by himself."

"Ah, great point. For the sake of this exercise I'll name Todoroki MVP for the first battle," All Might nodded. The next team got ready.

\- Battle #2 – Heroes: Sato & Koda vs Villains: Uraraka & Iida -

Sato and Koda opted for a straight forward assault. However, Uraraka and Iida were a bit more clever in their approach. Iida would make hit and run attacks only dropping back to the bomb when they got close enough. Uraraka would be the last line of defense as getting hit by her quirk effectively captured her opponent.

The bell had rung and Uraraka found herself alone with the 'bomb'. Iida was already out and about aiming to make hit and run assaults. Their comms were left open just in case.

She found some rubble in the room. Using her power she made them float. She had a limit around 6 tons. Using the rubble she made a remote activated trap above the door and the along the whole wall in case someone, I don't know, punched a hole through the wall. They were pretty thin basically constructed in a hurry.

Uraraka paced around the room. Pondering her power and what exactly it could do now. She'd have to ask Izuku about it later. Iida came up over the comms, "I'm incoming. Koda found a bear."

"What? a bear? Are you sure?" Uraraka replied thinking about how to deal with this new info.

"Yup, I kicked it. Didn't do much. We're going to regroup and take them on together," Iida stated.

"Right, I'll be waiting," Ochako replied. She stood ready in a battle stance of some kind.

Iida soared through the door. "A bit of a correction he has two bears," Iida added taking up a stance next to her. He noticed her rock field.

"That's pretty brilliant. That should crush those hero's skulls," Iida darkly stated. He had gotten a little too into the role of a villain. Ochako was getting a bit worried about him. A fist punched a hole in the wall. It was Sato. His enhanced strength was crazy powerful. A bear barreled through the door just as Rikido did the wall.

Ochako lunged forward, "Release!" 4 tons of rubble came crushing down. The bear was pretty much KO'd on the spot. Sato leapt forward dodging the rubble. Before he knew it Uraraka was on him. He went for a wild swing and she sidestepped it. Placing her whole hand on him, her quirk activated. She pushed him up into the ceiling. Since Sato had no way to produce excess force he just had to float there.

The other bear came through Sato's hole. Koda vaulted over the rubble and KO'd bear in the door way. He was making a run for the bomb. Uraraka had a split second decision to make, "Iida stop Koda! I'll handle the bear!" Iida hesitated for but a moment before speeding off.

The speedster easily intercepted Koda. There was tense stand off between the two.

Meanwhile, Uraraka had the joy of dealing with a god damn bear. It was bigger than her and had claws and a powerful jaw. Nothing about fighting a bear felt like a good idea to her. _What would Izuku do?_ She thought summoning her courage.

Back in the observation room, All Might was getting a bit tense. _She's seriously considering attacking a bear? Should I end it? Should I believe in her?_ All Might was in deep thought when Izuku spoke up.

"Looks crazy, but I feel bad for the bear. Its a melee fighter so it _has _to get close to her. Its all up to her to dodge the first attack," Izuku pointed out so matter-of-factly.

Back to Uraraka. She was prepared but still panicking. The bear lunged at her. Uraraka tripped backwards falling over. Out of instinct she reached out and planted an open palm on the bear's chest. Whatever force it was going to have was no more. She pushed it away from her harmlessly.

Well mostly harmless, the bear was freaking out a bit being in the air and weightless.

Iida had managed to wrestle capture tape around Koda's chest. The bell rung.

"Villains win! Koda make sure to calm them down before you leave," All Might requested.

The two teams had reconvened at the control room. "Can you tell what the heroes did wrong?" All Might asked the class.

Momo and Izuku spoke up cutting each other off. They glared at each other briefly. It wasn't a mean glare, but a competitive one. Izuku gestured to her to take this one, "I believe Sato-san and Koda-san underestimated Uraraka's quirk. Beyond that I'd have to say the villain's plan was much better and worked to their strengths."

Momo then gesture to Izuku if he wanted to add anything. Izuku did in fact make a comment, "I think the heroes also underestimated the villains resolve to defend the bomb. Bears are pretty intimidating, but clearly they had quirks capable of dealing with that."

All Might nodded, "Who do you think should be the MVP?"

Someone else for once spoke up. It was Katsuki of all people, "Uraraka, should be. While Iida provided support and the initial engagement. Uraraka did all the heavy lifting and did the most to put a wrench in the hero's plans."

"I'd have to agree. Uraraka is crowned the MVP of round #2," All Might declared. Uraraka was just floored by this.

"Congrats, Uraraka-san you earned it," Izuku smiled at her.

Iida felt the need to say something too, "I'm a little disappointed, but they're right. You stopped _two _bears and Sato. Compared to my contributions you did all the heavy lifting." This is what ring the most to her. Tears started to form in her eyes.

"Thanks you guys," She said sniffling a bit.

"Alright lets move on to the next set of teams," All Might declared.

\- Battle #3 – Heroes: Ashido & Sero vs Villains: Tokoyami & Asui -

The villains had a simple plan: Guard the bomb in darkness. Asui had a limited amount of night vision but could still make out shapes and people. Dark Shadow swelled to near full size. If not for the windows letting in just enough light to faintly see, Dark Shadow would have been full power. Tokoyami didn't have the willpower to control him at that stage.

The heroes had a decent plan: Sero would repel from the roof and burst through a window. Hopefully, they would be too distracted by Ashido to notice him. Ashido on the other hand would dare a frontal assault on Dark Shadow. She doubted her acid would affect it much but doesn't mean she can't make it defend Tokoyami. Asui would be the problem. Ashido had to fend off both of them which was not something she thought she could do for any amount of time.

This was Mina's moment to shine. Hopefully, she was enough of a showstopper to make this plan work. She wasn't the smartest cookie, but what she lacked in planning she made up in adaptability. Her clothes were acid resistant to a degree and her shoes had holes in them. Mina had become quite good at staking across her acid. The bell had sounded a minute of two ago. Sero and Mina parted ways immediately.

It took her almost 4 minutes to find the room with the boom. The door was left open and the darkness was thick in the room. Mina gulped seeing that. She crouched down just out of sight. Tapping her comm she opened the channel, "I'm in position and ready to strike. Its on the 4th floor near the south side of the building. Be warned its completely shrouded in dark-!" A giant dark claw ripped through the wall and just missed her. It broke lights as it was being withdrawn.

_Talk about a close call!_ Mina took a deep breath to calm herself.

"Are you okay?!" Sero asked shouting over the comms.

"Yeah, he nearly got me. As soon as you see me you need to get in there. I don't think I can hold off both of them. That shadow is crazy strong," Mina explained taking another deep breath. She put on her game face. It was do or die time and she had no plans to die. Placing a hand on either wall she melted handholds in them. She was going to bolt in there once Sero gave her the go ahead.

"I'm in position. Begin!" Sero commanded.

She bolted across the ground trying to stay low. Somehow she managed to dodge a tongue and a claw attack. Tokoyami was sitting cross-legged on the floor. Asui was somewhere on the walls being a real nuisance. Dark Shadow was huge, at least All Might size.

Ashido slicked her arms with acid and swung it at Tokoyami. The shadow intercepted the attack more or less unaffected by the acid. Just as Mina had thought. Asui was about to make another attack when Sero burst through a window. He landed right next to the bomb. He was about to touch it when Asui dropped kicked him in the chest. Sero flew into the wall. He got up albeit very obviously hurt.

Ashido was left to square off 1v1 with Dark Shadow while Sero and Asui squared off 1v1. Dark shadow intercepted any attempt to harm Tokoyami and his counters were brutally fast and Mina only dodged them by the skin of her teeth. Asui was more than a match for Sero. He was holding his own, but it the match continued any further he'd get captured. Ashido had to think quickly and look for a solution. It was bad enough she was pretty sure they were out of time.

Rolling to dodge the last attack by Dark Shadow, Mina found herself next to the outer wall. An idea formed. Using extra strong acid she flung it at the wall. Her acid quickly ate through the concrete wall. Light poured in from outside. Dark Shadow had been momentarily stunned by the new light.

Mina nodded knowing the plan. "Sero, regroup! I'll take Asui and the wall if you could fend off Dark Shadow for a bit," She shouted out to him. He wasn't it much of a place to regroup. Ashido launched a strip of acid at Asui.

Asui backed off momentarily. Sero used that opportunity to shot tape at Dark Shadow's arm as it went for Ashido again. His tape wrapped around it and then he pulled. Dark Shadow missed and broke a wall. When Dark Shadow pulled back his arm taking Sero with it. He used the force and retracted his tape to pendulum around the room aiming for Tokoyami.

Asui was about to intercept Sero when a wide sheet of acid blocked her path. Ashido had been burning holes into the wall letting in more and more natural light. Dark Shadow's power had waned considerably. It still managed to block Sero's attack but just barely.

Kicking off Dark Shadow, Sero aimed at both villains. He let loose two streams of tape. Asui jumped away to dodge only to get tackled by Ashido. The tape aimed at Tokoyami landed and bond the man. Dark Shadow withdrew trying to break out its master.

Ashido had pinned Asui to the ground, "Sero, go for the bomb!" Asui was a lot stronger than she looked. Especially her legs. Ashido was probably just a little too heavy for Asui to just pick up and move around with. Not that she minded curves are healthy too.

Sero landed on the ground and ran for the bomb. Just as Dark Shadow intercepted him and started to wrestle him the bell rung.

"Villains wins to timeout! Great work everyone head back," All Might announced over the loud speaker.

Mina let go immediately and Dark Shadow stopped wrestling with Sero. "You're pretty amazing, Asui," Mina stated helping her up.

"Call me Tsu, please. You were pretty great too," Asui commented.

"Ashido-san, some help. My tape is like steel so you'll need to dissolve it," Sero requested kneeling next to Tokoyami.

Ashido was worried she could burn her fellow student. Then All Might came on the loud speaker, "It has been recommended to me that you should use the tip of your finger and it should weaken the bonds enough to get out of."

"That could work!" Mina said all excited her teacher was so insightful. She indeed did as requested. Only put acid at the tip of her finger at around the strength to melt steel and concrete. She quickly ran her finger across the tape. It sizzled a little bit before stopping. It hadn't cut the whole thing cleanly, but enough that Dark Shadow could rip it off.

All Might was very satisfied to see the outcome of that match. It was close. In a real scenario the heroes would have won as bombs are dealt with in a different way. "That was a close match. I'd say your teams tied. Can anyone tell me what would have tipped the scales earlier?" All Might stated looking around.

Mina herself spoke up, "If I had come up with the plan quicker we would have won. I wasted too much time sticking to the original plan before I came up with a new one."

Momo then added, "I also think Asui was underestimated. She was the ace up their sleeve as its said."

Izuku made note of that. It was an unusual way to say a saying or phrase. She must not have a lot of people skills.

"Which of them could be the MVP this round?" All Might asked his students.

Izuku chimed in first, "Ashido-san. Despite being the cause for losing she also came up with the plan to turn the tide of battle at its most crucial point. The fact she's aware of this speaks volumes to her character too."

The rest of the class seemed to agree to that statement. All Might nodded, "Ashido, will be declared the MVP for round #3!"

Mina leapt into the air out of excitement and joy. "Thanks everyone," Mina said smiling.

The next group left to get ready. This was the match everyone wanted to see. Two of the Big 4 would have to duke it out.


	7. To Battle - Part 2

\- Battle #4 – Heroes: Aoyama & Bakugo vs Villains: Yaoyorozu & Hagakure -

The villains had a simple plan: Barricade and last. The heroes weren't much better: Attack.

This one was a dozy for Momo to plan for. Bakugo had the offensive power of a tank and literally at that. Her only consolation was that she didn't have to go against Izuku. While Katsuki would be a handful to deal with. Izuku would have been down right impossible to beat. Momo knew her quirk was good, but not good enough to battle someone with 3 offensive quirks and _knew_ how to use them together or separately.

Her plan was simple barricade the doors and reinforce the walls. She would leave one gap open in them. Traps were laid across the room. Net shooters, tazers, and a single landmine for good measure. She couldn't be over prepared for Katsuki. She couldn't completely count out Aoyama, but that was Hagakure's mission.

Before Momo had started to fortify, she sent the invisi-girl out and with one mission. Wait for the two to separate and then capture Aoyama. She should be able to get the drop on him. They even found out that if she held the capture tape in her hand it couldn't be seen either.

After preparing the room she knelt down in front of the bomb. She then created a longer than normal staff. It was about the length of a pike. Back in the medieval times they used pikes to defend against cavalry and sometimes to break shield walls since it had so much reach. They was no sharp end even though Momo considered it. Instead it was made from a tungsten-steel composition.

Closing her eyes, she recalled the conversation between her and Midoriya.

\- Slight Flashback -

Yaoyorozu and Midoriya had gotten out to the field well ahead of everyone else. She was more than comfortable waiting for the rest but Midoriya felt the need to break the silence. Well maybe not need but he waited to tell Momo something.

_Maybe apologize for calling me, 'princess'. I don't completely hate it but it reminds me of my mother and I do dislike her,_ Momo thought looking to the other teen.

"Sorry about calling you, princess, this morning Yaoyorozu-san, but I'll probably keep doing it. You just have this certain regal nature about you and I think its fitting," Izuku sort of apologized.

Momo had to be up front with him about it, "I don't particularly like being called 'princess' reminds me of my mother and she wasn't the nicest growing up." Momo wondered why she had told him that.

Then Momo got a piece of information she was not expecting, "You seem like a level-headed person and I feel like I can trust you. So I'll tell you what my quirk is." Izuku was smirking or grinning she couldn't tell the difference. She would at some point know what his quirk was but it must be important to him for her to know.

She gestured for him to continue, "Quirk Duplication. Anyone I touch I get a duplicate of their quirk as if I had been born with it."

Momo found a lot of pride in controlling her reactions and facial expressions, but this was beyond expectation. She gave him a wide-eyed look understanding the gravity of his quirk. She made a mental note for the future to prevent him from touching her without permission first.

Izuku seemed disappointed with her. He sighed, "I thought you were level-headed but I spoke too soon. I'm sorry that I gave you that burden of knowledge." That was it. He was completely quiet after that. Whether she had known it or not she could tell they were off to the wrong start.

Her mental image of herself cracked a bit after that. Unintentionally, he had rattled her to her core. She had judged someone without getting know them first and went one step past that. Just hearing his quirk made her not want to trust him, but she knew better. Quirks are just tools after all.

\- Back to the Battle! -

Yaoyorozu's trance broke when an explosion racked the walls. Having been reinforced with wood and bolts they could withstand one or two blasts. She stood up long staff in hand. She swung it around getting into an all to familiar combat stance.

She had to land the first strike otherwise it would be more difficult to land anymore past that. The first strike had to be precise and quick. Momo didn't want to break any bones within Katsuki, but it would slow him down more than anything.

A singular blast ripped through the wall. Katsuki rocketed into the room through the smoke screen. Momo wasted no time. He was at near max range from her, but still would land within her strike zone. Bringing the staff to her right, allowing her left to slid to the bottom. She made sure to keep the staff to her side and then behind her to the right. She started the swing with her left hand feeling the burn in her muscles. She took her other hand and slammed it into the staff causing it to quickly come forward.

Katsuki landed with zero time to react. Her long staff struck him in the chest. His facial expression told her it hurt but not enough to really stop him. The blow however did knock him back a bit and into a net trap.

It took seconds for Katsuki to blow apart the net. That was all the time Yaoyorozu needed. He was well within range of a proper strike not an improvised one. This time properly, one hand down acting as the fulcrum and the other applying the force near the center of gravity. A powerful strike careened right into Bakugo's side.

There was no crack and the hit wasn't a satisfying impact. Bakugo's reaction time must be ludicrous. He had managed to determine which side the strike would happen on and catch it in time. He even used an explosion to reduce the impact force on his hand. It must have still stung though as Bakugo shook off his hand.

The two stood there staring each other down. If he tried to let loose an explosion at this range I'd be to weak and she would counter. A counter that would be better placed this time. Momo was in no position to act. It was a stalemate.

Hagakure was slowly, but surely trying to sneak up on Katsuki. When she brought out the capture tape a feat of planning and skill unlike anything Momo had seen before happened. It all started when she made a split second glance at the capture tape. Hagakure had the tape up high aiming to put it around him.

Bakugo stepped back into Hagakure and grabbed her arm. He pulled her slightly over his shoulder before using his elbow as lift. He threw Hagakure at Momo. This left him wide open, but also gave Momo a choice to make. A choice he knew that she would make based on her character. Momo dropped the staff and prepared to catch the invisible girl. She didn't have much to go by but she knew she was coming.

Katsuki meanwhile went airborne and circled around to the back side of the bomb. He placed one hand on it. This all happened in a span of several seconds. Just as the bell rang out Momo caught Hagakure. All that planning and preparation all ruined by Momo.

"Heroes wins. That was an intense match. Great work everyone!" All Might said over the loud speaker. Momo slumped her shoulders. She was better than this.

They were all back at the control room, "Can anyone tell me what went wrong if anything?"

As if Momo wasn't feeling down enough already Izuku was the first to speak, "From my point of view it was a bad quirk match up. As good and versatile as Yaoyorozu-san's quirk is its not a combat quirk. Same here goes for Hagakure-san. Aoyama-san only got captured because he was talking too much and not listening to the world around him."

"Very astute of you. That is something that heroes must always keep in mind when facing an opponent. It might be better to wait for backup and contain the villain there as opposed to outright try and take the villain head-on," All Might explained.

Momo felt a hand on her shoulder since she had been stuck in her head. Much to her surprise it was Midoriya and being him just panicked her briefly. "You should teach me sometime. The way you moved and the way you used your weapon, that has to be trained," He whispered to her before walking away.

"What about my.. you know?" Momo was worried he had just copied her quirk.

"Gloved hand. Don't worry so much," Izuku replied. This eased her worries instantly. Also knowing that someone like him wanted lessons from her brought her spirits back up, if only a bit.

\- Battle #5 – Heroes: Midoriya & Ojiro vs Villains: Jirou & Mineta -

Worry was plastered all over Mineta's face. Jirou hated the little pervert, but he was her teammate so they had make to something work.

"Alright, you little punk, tell me about your quirk and let's see if we can make some kind of a defense," Kyoka requested.

"My quirk is called 'Pop Off'. My head generates these balls. They stick to each other, any surface except me, and last up to 24 hours. The stickiness is enough to prevent movement unless you were okay with skin getting ripped," Mineta said pulling of a 'grape' and sticking it to a wall. "We're boned aren't we?" Mineta asked.

An idea formed in Kyoka's head. She wasn't the smartest, but she could still come up with good strategies. "Put a bunch of those balls around the room like a minefield. Then lace the hallways with them. If they attack head on they'll be easy to capture," Jirou explained grinning. "Maybe we can win this," she whispered.

The little teen started to litter the bomb room with grape mines. Then out in the hallways and about two floors got covered before his head started to bleed. The spheres were spread out enough for him to bounce around but not so much that someone larger could get through easily. Even if they managed to avoid all the balls it would take them too long.

Kyoka stood within the safe space around the bomb. She plugged one jack in the floor and waited.

The tailman, Ojiro, had never spoken to the green-haired boy directly before. He'd heard his inspiring speeches and his thorough analyzing. The blonde martial artist understood Midoriya was smart and had a powerful quirk.

"Ojiro-san, can you tell me about your quirk and any other skills you might have?" Midoriya asked standing outside the building.

Ojiro chuckled, "My quirk is tail. Beyond that I'm a black belt martial artist."

Midoriya whistled, "Alright color me impressed. Might have to ask you for a few pointers in the future."

"What's the plan, Midoriya-san?" Ojiro asked.

"I want you to go for the direct assault. I'll swoop in from above. Just let me know which floor they're on," Midoriya strategized.

"Why not you go for the direct attack? Isn't your quirk more suited for it?" Ojiro questioned part curiosity part skepticism.

"Well, that's simple really. They'll be expecting that," Midoriya bluntly retorted.

"I suppose that's true. Fine, I'll be the vanguard," Ojiro yielded.

"Good, I'll see you at the end," Midoriya said just as the bell went off. He touched his face and literally flew away.

Ojiro sighed and ran into the building. The first two floors, nothing. Then on the third floor purple spheres everywhere. He recognized them from Mineta. He figured it would be an excellent idea not to touch them. This slowed down his progress considerably.

It took him nearly 4 minutes to clear that floor and make it to the next. It was even more dense. "Midoriya-san, they're on the fourth floor. If you could do something about these purple balls that would be great," Ojiro requested.

Izuku had just got his partner's message. Was there something he could do about the balls? He focused on one telekinetically. It was just at the absolute range of his telekinesis. It wouldn't budge. It was some kind of super adhesive or molecular bonding. He then opted for the next step: empowered telekinesis. He was up to 42kg of force and he had gotten much better at shaping the psychic energy. Creating a psychic knife he cut the concrete from under the sphere. The purple sphere was fairly light. He practiced cutting and moving them around.

It took him a minute to get used to the technique. The green-haired teen ran down to the fifth floor from the roof access. He was right above Ojiro. His partner was right there was a ton of those purple orbs.

"I'm going to start creating a path. I can only move about 25 at a time so be patient," Izuku stated on the comms. Empowered telekinesis coming right up. He closed his eyes and reached out with his telekinesis.

Then by the dozen he cut and moved them. Ojiro was making steady progress until they came to the bomb room. Mineta was by the door waiting for Ojiro to attack. Kyoka was by the bomb listening?

Listening! _Oh shit. Changes of plans. They've littered the bomb room with these spheres. I going to guess Mineta is immune to his own quirk, but Jirou probably isn't_, Izuku smirked.

Midoriya opened his comm link, "Jirou, you're not the only one that can sense better. Ojiro-san he's near the door be prepared when you enter."

Under him she stood up and he could tell she was looking up. A jack shot into the concrete and then another. She funneled her heartbeat into the jacks. It would only be a matter of time before the vibrations would damage the concrete. He started to cut and pick up spheres by the dozen. Jirou must have noticed because her heart rate increased. Then using his new found weapons he flung them all at Jirou. Her jacks got pulled out and she was pinned to the floor.

Izuku let go of the empowerment and his world spun. He had hit his telekinetic limit. He shook off the vertigo and walked to another room above nothing.

Ojiro had bursted through the door and taken a sphere to the palm. This had proved bad for Mineta as Ojiro socked him with the purple sphere causing the little teen to violently bounce back. Izuku blew a hole through the floor and dropped down a floor. The bomb was but a few feet from him. Jirou shot out a jack. Izuku caught it with his telekinesis. Thankfully, she couldn't exert that much force with her jacks.

Mineta tried to throw a ball or two at Midoriya. Again he grabbed them out of midair with his telekinesis and dropped them to the floor. Midoriya was like the juggernaut nothing was going to impede his progress.

He laid one hand on the bomb and won.

"Heroes win. Great job everyone. Head back to the control room," All Might commanded over the comms.

Izuku walked over to Jirou, "I'm sorry about that."

"Can you get them off me?" she asked bluntly.

"That depends on two things: are they touching skin or on your clothes? If they're on clothes I can remove them. If its your skin I could just I don't want to hurt you," Izuku replied moving away the ones that never made contact with her.

"I don't care just get these off me," Jirou retorted.

"Alright," Izuku took a deep breath. He empowered his telekinesis once more. Blood started to drip from his nose. Then all at once he removed every orb. He upped the level of precision for the skin cuts. Instead of making a noticeable wound they were small cuts. He wobbled a bit.

"Holy crap are you okay?!" Jirou asked standing up. She caught him as his footing became unstable.

"I think I over did it," Izuku slurred lending on her shoulder.

"No, shit, Sherlock. Let's get you to Recovery Girl," Jirou retorted helping him walk.

"Midoriya-san, could you before you go," Ojiro asked holding up his hand. The green-haired teen merely waved at it before it popped off. Ojiro held his hand there was a small cut on it.

"Sorry, accuracy is a bit low right now," Midoriya chuckled. Ojiro took Midoriya's other arm and supported him. The two of them combined found him easy enough to move.

"Midoriya-san, what did you do to become like this?" Jirou asked. By now they had made it down the stairs.

"I'm just like you guys. If I overuse my quirk it causes physical repercussions. Just for me when I use multiple quirks it eats away at my stamina and strength even faster. This effect is from one quirk in particular," Izuku explained his stomach starting to turn. At this rate he'd need to work on his quirk resistance in general if he was going to use this many consistently.

Before any kind of panic could set in Midoriya also added, "You're both mutant-type I can't copy yours." The last thing he wanted was to be dropped face first on the ground.

Kyoka sighed in relief, "That's good to know."

Izuku just hung his head in disappointment. He didn't have the energy to be his usual confident, strong willed self.

All Might watched the two student carry Izuku. _One For All must be taking a toll on him_, All Might thought. Mineta had made it back. "Can anyone tell what the villains did wrong?"

"Pick a fight with a pro," Denki mouthed off. Momo seemed to mirror that thought when she spoke up, "Could any of us have beaten him?"

"Of course! These aren't 1v1 battles. You have to rely on your teammate to make up for your weaknesses. Even in that battle we just witnessed Midoriya had to rely on Ojiro. Ojiro took the brunt of the attack while Midoriya sneaked behind enemy lines and infiltrated," All Might pointed out.

"Tch, I wouldn't need anyone's help to beat Izuku 1v1," Katsuki snarled.

_What dauntless pride. Midoriya would give the teachers of UA a run for their money_, All Might frowned looking at Katsuki.

"Everyone did great today. Even if you lost you learned a valuable lesson. Teamwork is important and so is respecting each other. Even though Midoriya beat them they were the first to help him," All Might both congratulating and chastising this students. "Get changed and head back to class!"

\- At the infirmary -

Izuku's head spun from the pain and the vertigo. Kyoka and Ojiro watched over him. Ojiro was a pretty normal guy from what Izuku gathered. Kyoka was pretty nice as well.

"What do you think about Seven Days to Live? I like the title tracks but the rest of their album is just weird," Izuku commented. Somehow they had got on the topic of music. Izuku was an anything that sounds good kind of guy.

Kyoka was sort of the same way, but gravitated to rock. "That's a Neo Rock band. I love seeing those guys live! Best concert I've ever been too," she replied smiling.

"I-I've never been to any concerts," Izuku admitted. Chiyo walked up to him.

"You're lucky young man. This is a CT of your brain," she said handing him an x-ray.

He looked at her like 'what am I supposed to do with this?'. The nurse sighed, "Individuals with psychic power usually use this part of the brain to command their power." She pointed to one part and circled it with her finger. "But that's not you. You're entire brain chemistry is different than any quirk I've ever seen. The best I can tell you is that you gave yourself a concussion. Not a severe one, but a mild one," Recovery Girl explained taking her x-ray back.

"Too many of those and you'll be out for the count," Kyoka said punching his arm lightly.

All Might came into the room. The two students jumped from seeing him. "You two can return to class. I'd like to speak to Midoriya," All Might requested. The two students nodded.

Midoriya waited for them to leave before speaking, "I was having a pleasant conversation, Toshinori-sensei." All Might's form deflated. He coughed up a bit of blood.

"I'm worry about you, Midoriya," All Might admitted. Izuku sighed and rolled his eyes.

"You didn't tell me he knew the real you, Toshinori," she said poking him with her staff.

"You didn't come see me just to say you're worried. What's this about?" Midoriya asked making eye contact with All Might.

"I want to talk to you about One For All. I told you how it worked but not the history," All Might started pulling up a chair.

Before he managed to continue Izuku interjected, "Are you sure you want to share this with me? I'm not the successor. I have a version of what you have, but its not One For All."

_This kid is perfect for the symbol of peace,_ All Might thought. "Think of it this way: You know that I'm dying. This incredible power can be passed along. Giving another individual the ability to do great justice with it. If you truly want to become the Symbol of Peace its in your best interest to keep this power alive and on your side," Toshinori grinned knowing it was a sound argument.

Izuku thought the same things, "Okay, you got me. The Symbol of Peace needs an equal, a paragon of justice by my side if you will."

"Good. Now that we see eye-to-eye, let me explain the origin: Long ago when quirks first became known a certain man was born. This man had the power to take and give quirks. Much like you. Now this man had a younger brother. This younger brother had a strong sense of justice, but he was quirkless. Well as you can imagine the older brother went on to dominate all of Japan. He was unstoppable with his army of super quirk users and himself. After his domination he took pity on his younger brother and gave him a rather useless sounding quirk. The ability to stockpile power. On its own it would have been weak, but you see the younger brother had a quirk. It was a dormant quirk that had only been awaken when this other quirk was given to him. He had the power to pass down his quirk. This was the birth of One For All. I am the seventh generation of this power. A power that has been cultivated and grown throughout the years. Now this older brother had a name too. All For One. This is the name of the most powerful villain to ever walk the land. I was the one to take him down but he left me with a life-threatening injury," All Might explained sparing no detail.

A thought formed in Izuku's mind, "My mom said my father's quirk was the ability to breath fire. Knowing what I do now do you think its possible that... that I could be related to All For One?" The thought scared Izuku. If his father was the infamous villain and his power was as such then it would be even harder to escape his fate. Unless of course he put in more hard work and became the Symbol of Peace to spite his blood.

"I do not know for certain. We have never collected a blood sample of All For One," All Might admitted.

"Then promise me: if you ever capture him you will let me know!" Izuku said sitting up and grabbing All Might's silver age costume. The flames of determination and passion burned in his eyes.

"I'll see what I can do," All Might met Izuku's gaze. Izuku let go of All Might.

"What are you looking for in a successor? I want to help you," Izuku stated standing up from the bed.

"Strong sense of justice is crucial. Physically fit would be nice but I can work with them on that. Good judge of character. Iron willed. A quirk is unnecessary. Maybe a few other qualities," All Might listed thinking he should make a check list.

"Hmm. That describes me to a degree. I'll start poking and prying then. I've got a few in mind, but I'll have to get to know them more," Izuku stated pulling off diodes.

"Who do you have in mind?" All Might asked genuinely curious.

"Yaoyorozu, Uraraka, Kirishima, Asui, Iida, and Ojiro come to mind. Of them, I'd beat on Uraraka, Kirishima, or Iida actually accepting the power. The others would probably decline as its too much of a 'save the world' level responsibility," Izuku replied. The vertigo was gone and his nausea had subsided.

"I'll start watching them. If you could give me a report every week that would be great too," All Might requested.

"Sure thing. I'll just add that to my homework," Izuku sighed. Double the work, half the reward.

Izuku held out his hand as a gesture of good faith in All Might and of himself. All Might gave him one good shake. The green-haired teen smirked and left the infirmary.

"He's a good one, Toshinori," Chiyo chimed in.

"I know. I'm glad he's on our side," All Might chuckled.


	8. A Mostly Normal Day

A Mostly Normal Day

It was the period before lunch. Instead of having a math class, Aizawa decided something more important should be addressed. "Alright, I need you guys to decide on a class president and a vp. I don't care how, but you have to till lunch to decide," Aizawa bluntly stated. He crawled into a sleeping bag off to the left and found a good corner to nap in.

"I propose we vote for our class president and VP! We shall do this democratically," Iida said walking to the front of the class.

"Won't everyone just vote for themselves," Denki pointed out looking lazy in his chair.

"Exactly, so if anyone gets more than one vote then they'll have earned it," Iida rebutted.

Momo created a stack of 7x10cm pieces of paper. Iida handed them out to the entire class. Everyone was given 5 minutes to decide. After that they collected all the slips and Iida tallied them.

Midoriya: 4

Yaoyorozu: 4

Iida: 2

Todoroki: 2

Bakugo: 2

Kaminari: 2

Mineta: 1

Kirishima: 1

Ashido: 1

Sero: 1

While Izuku didn't mind being chosen, he didn't really want the responsibility. Yaoyorozu would be perfect for the role. Iida probably would be too.

"Okay, let's hold the tie breaker round!" Iida stated. Momo provided another stack of paper. This time Momo and Izuku were barred from voting.

Yaoyorozu: 13

Midoriya: 5

"Congratulations, Yaoyorozu-san, you've been voted as the class president!" Iida declared pointing to the chalk board.

Izuku whispered to her, "Are you sure you want me up here with you?"

She whispered back, "Why not? You've shown yourself to be a pretty good leader. Definitely better than me."

Izuku whispered, "You shouldn't doubt yourself." He ended the conversation walking back to his seat.

The rest of the time was dedicated to studying. Momo was quick at work thinking about how she wanted to delegate the responsibilities.

Lunch time was fairly normal. Almost everyone was now sitting at the same table. It was lively for sure. Laughing, jokes, and more than a little swearing from Katsuki. Then the alarms started to blare.

A random student nearby made a panicked statement, "A level 3 alarm? I've never seen one before and I'm a second year."

Before anyone from class 1-A moved Izuku shouted, "Just stay calm and stay put. If this was an invasion or attack teachers would already be out here managing the chaos!" Only part of class 1-A complied. Mainly, Izuku's friends and a few others just watched the insane panic. The green-haired teen knew he'd have to find Momo and get her to deal with this. She was class president after all.

Izuku was more than built enough to resist being pushed and pulled around by the crowds. Momo was taller than most and it was easy to spot her. The sea of students had been gridlocked in the narrow hallways. Momo was by a wall getting slowly squished.

The green-haired teen glanced out the window and saw the reporters and camera crews. He now understood what set off the alarm. He made it to her and pushed away several students. Using his pure brute strength he created a small area for them.

She was against the wall. He had his hands on the wall and next to both sides of her head. He had bought her about 15cm (6") of space. This was the closest anyone had been to her. His chest and broad shoulders had been barely 2cm (1") from hers.

"Well, princess, what do you suppose we should do to stop this mess?" Izuku asked catching her attention.

"What can we do about it? I heard one of the second years saying this only happens when an intruder is on campus," Momo asked.

"Its just a crew of reporters and cameramen," Izuku retorted, "We need to get this under control before someone gets trampled or crushed."

"Then why don't you do something?" Momo asked confused as why he would need her help.

"Because they trust you. My reputation has already been dragged through the mud. I can get you in sight, but you need to be the one to calm them down," Izuku explained getting pushed into her. He glanced over his shoulder, "If you guys don't give me some room I'll blow up this entire corridor." Rage was clear on his voice. This gave them back some room.

"What do you have in mind?" Momo put her serious face on.

"I'll float you and push you in the right direction, the rest is all you," Izuku stated pulling off one of his gloves with his teeth.

"Okay, do it," Momo requested.

Izuku smirked, "You might want to make some shorts, otherwise everyone's going to get one hell of a view." Momo blushed but nodded. He put his hand on her clothed stomach. Izuku had found one that he could in fact activate Force Nullification through thin clothing. It required him to apply a bit more pressure than normal.

Momo had slipped on a created pair of shorts just in time to feel the weightlessness. Some how he had activated it through her clothing. The green-haired boy gently pushed her up out of the crowd and aimed her to the exit sign. Thinking a bit out of panic, she created an air horn. Her orientation was almost horizontal by the time she reached the sign. She could see the reporters outside.

She blew the air horn. This immediately got everyone's attention. "We're all UA students here right?! Then we should act like it! It looks like the new reporters tripped the alarm! You can see them outside if you look out the window!" Momo yelled. The crowd started to murmur and look out the windows. Momo say Izuku give her a thumbs up from the corner of the hallway. That made her smile.

Slowly, the crowd dispersed leaving her in the hallway still floating. This gave her sometime to think about the feeling of weightlessness. It wasn't pleasant, but it wasn't terrible either. Kind of like being submerged in water but being able to breath. She quickly found the most infuriating thing being the inability to move at all. Swimming or any movement didn't really work.

Izuku was standing right below her, "Having fun?"

"I was for a bit, but I can't swim or move at all," She lamented.

"You need to create propulsion from another source if you wanted to move," Izuku replied touching four fingers together. Gravity had re-engaged and she was now free falling. The sudden application of gravity sent her limbic system into a panic. Then two strong arm caught her. He had eased her descent and was now carrying her. Much to Momo's embarrassment she was being carried bridal style by her now VP. She could feel one gloved hand on her shoulder and her legs rested on his arm. He was being very careful not to accidentally touch her skin.

"Well done. That was quick and to the point. I think everyone choose correctly making you president," Izuku commented still carrying her.

She smiled at the compliment and then blushed, "It would be fine if you called me, Momo-san."

"Oh, really? I've got one better. Momo-hime," Izuku rebutted. That one really made her blush. The worse part was he was being sincere and endearing as hell. She nodded instead of replying as she might say something in more embarrassing. He let her down and replaced his glove.

They returned to lunch Izuku acting as if that exchange was a normal kind of thing; Momo was stuck in her head again. She couldn't believe she would be the one to quell the crowd. All it took was a bit of a push from him. Whatever she had thought of him was shattered. He was a nice guy and wanted those around him to excel. She concluded that he's actually pretty selfless given the opportunity.

The rest of lunch was uneventful. Izuku had more or less just shrugged off the whole event. The class couldn't stop talking about Momo's courage and how she single-handily calmed down the crowd. As much that should bother Izuku it was more par for the course than anything. Somehow the battle trial had made the class less willing to talk to him or acknowledge him on occasion. Uraraka and Iida still talked to him, but they seemed like the exception. Katsuki had made it a mission of his to distance himself from Izuku to a degree. He even made Mineta trade seats with him.

Izuku sighed and opened his 'Hero Analysis for the Future' notebook. He was on volume 13. The class of 1-A had been split into two volumes: 13 and 14. This included sketches, notes, hero costume, and even support items that could help. Personality summaries were also included but left much to be desired since they were just observations more than concrete character assessments. The final bell had rung and a unfairly face grace his desk. Yaoyorozu was standing next to his desk.

"How may I help you, Momo-hime?" Izuku asked in a unusually formal tone.

"I wanted to discuss our responsibilities and what each of us should take, Izuku-san," Momo answered getting the attention of a few classmates. Whether it was jealousy or skepticism Izuku had earned a few glares. Uraraka and Iida were going to stay behind, but decided against it.

It took a few minutes before the entire class had been cleared out. Aizawa made one comment before leaving, "I expect that nothing will be astray when I come back in a few hours to close up." He wasn't the normal teacher that say things like 'Don't do anything I wouldn't' or 'I expect both of to leave within half an hour'. Nope, he just let anything happen as long as the status quo wasn't disrupted too much.

"You have my attention so sit and you can tell me what you want," Izuku offered pushing his homework and books into his backpack.

She complied and pulled out a well laid out plan/speech. This did not surprise Izuku in the least. What was getting him, was this unnerving feeling. He felt like she had something else to get off her chest. Not a confession but maybe one, definitely a more romantic vibe.

"So first we have to fix your image. I took some time and asked around. You're horribly misunderstood," Momo stated gaining a quick statement from Izuku, 'No kidding.' He shrugged, she smiled at the comment, "You're powerful. Even more so than Todoroki-san. We need to leverage that. I want you to use your power minimally in group exercises and rely only on your teammates. People need to understand you're group first and you second."

"Well, that's true most of the time. What if it would have made the difference?" Izuku asked hoping to derail her. Derailing someone from a well planned speech or plan would allow someone to see just how well thought out the whole thing is. If you can't derail them its more than a simple idea.

"Stick to your guns. Use only if asked. I they are asking for your help then that means they trust you to some extent. People also don't like being overshadowed too much. Now of course if lives are on the line I expect you to use everything you have to prevent it," Momo instructed her gaze intense. She really meant it.

"Okay. Beyond my reputation, how else do you want to do this?" Izuku wondered.

"I'll take point, leading, coordinating, and planning. I'll handle all of the delegating and who should do what. I want you to be the enforcer. I think I'm respected enough that people will generally do what I ask, but.. but they fear you. I want you to keep people in line and correct delinquent behavior. You're probably the best example right now of what a pro should act like and be like, so I want you to push people to better themselves and curb behavior that's not fitting for a hero," Momo explained feeling a twinge of annoyance from Izuku. Her comment about fear got to him. He didn't realize he was feared. The least ideal position to be in if you want to make friends.

Izuku was about to cross his arm when she reached out and grabbed his hand. This was surprising. Momo was usually reserved and... afraid to touch him.

"I'm sorry. I crossed a line. But Izuku, you shouldn't let what they think of you affect you so much," Momo pleaded with him.

"But I must! If you think they're hard to change then wait until we debut! My past will haunt me and my quirk inspires a certain line of thought. Even... even All Might thinks as much," Izuku slumped in his chair.

"Then allow me to help you break the chain! You're so hellbent on believing in people that you won't believe in yourself! Have faith in me so that I may instill others to have faith in you!" Momo shouted at him getting frustrated by his doubt. It was like hers after all.

Izuku sat up straight and looked her right in the eyes, "Don't think for a moment that if I saved each and everyone of them they would be grateful. If anything that would just prove the kind of monster I am. I don't want to be a villain, but everything I've learned so far has pointed me towards that end!"

That was new info to Momo. He must have learned something recently that was significant and evil. His usual determination and passion was wavering.

With her mind a thought solidified. She needed to know more. Touching him would accomplish a few goals. It was meant to be a gesture of good will to the class her giving her power to him. It would be a conscious purposeful decision that meant she had faith in him. Second, she wanted a reason to spend more time with him. Not in a romantic way, but as a friend. Something about him sang to her. He was easy to talk to and had meaningful, thought out comments. Academically they were pretty close and he could out plan her any day of the week. Lastly, she wanted to know if she was using her quirk well. Time and time again her perception of her quirk had been tarnished. She had spotted his 'Hero Analysis For the Future' notebooks and couldn't help wonder if she was in there.

She reached out trying to touch his face. He was swift. He had caught her hand in a split second and restrained it. It was a feint though. He replied with venom, "I don't want you pity, Momo." He had dropped the honorific. He would be in a second even more angry. She had slid up her other arm and managed to touch him. There was nothing she felt making skin to skin contact. He was warm though.

Izuku jumped from his seat and started to pace around. He was furious. Momo didn't quite understand.

She got up and put her hand on his shoulders. He was facing away. She spoke up, "Izuku-san, I don't regret what I just did. I'll even tell them myself. It was my choice after all."

Then he turned to her. The glare and annoyance on his face cut deep. Izuku explained no more rage or venom, "You don't get it, Momo, quirks are interesting things. Did you know yours is a passive type with an active component? Which means I can't turn it off!"

Momo made a grave error thinking about how his quirk worked. She was under the impression it was like that of a laundry list or something simple that just allowed him to select and combo. Instead it actually was this complex relationship between passive and active. This actually made more sense why the strain on him was so great using multiple quirks for a prolonged period. She chastised herself for being so foolish. Meeting his gaze she started to get teary eyed. She was better than this.

Yaoyorozu was about to turn and run. She turned and took one step. The green-haired teen decided that can't be how today ends. He reached out and grabbed her arm. Izuku pulled and spun her into him. For a moment she was left breathless by the quick choice. They were sort of hugging. "I'm sorry. You were just trying to help. I'm grateful for that. And I know that look in your eyes. That self hatred. Its not a pretty look for you, Momo-hime," Izuku whispered into her ear. She laughed at that. Momo gave him one good squeeze.

"Thank you," was all she whispered back. He let go of her and his usual demeanor had returned. He wanted to explore the quirk but it would have to wait. Within his quirk space hers manifested as an emotion: Diligence.

"We're going to have to do this more often," Izuku chuckled picking up his backpack.

"The hugging?" she replied her mind clearly in a whirlwind of thoughts.

Izuku laughed at her train of thought, "The studying, but if you want I can throw in a few hugs for free." Momo blushed, but laughed at the silly comment.

"Do you want me to create a study plan for my quirk?" Momo asked spotting the clock. It had been nearly an hour.

"Hmm, that depends how much do you know about your quirk? Is it more a feeling or can you quantify the experience and gauge exactly how your using it?" Izuku replied leaving her with much to consider.

"I've never thought it that way. But its getting late and we should head home," Momo offered.

"You're right. Mei is going to kill me for not texting and so is my mom," Izuku chuckled pulling out his phone. He had left it on silent and indeed they had 'blown up' his phone.

"Mei? Is that your girlfriend?" Momo asked walking side by side with him down the hall.

"It sure is. She in the support department. She's a bit crazy, but I love her," Izuku stated realizing that would have been a bit awkward to hear.

"Oh, I'll have to met her sometime," Momo replied.

"I would not recommend that with your power. She and the rest of them would go nuts over what you can do," Izuku commented earning a smile from her.

"I'll take that under consideration," Momo teased nudging Izuku. They both chuckled. The rest of the walk out of the school was about heroes and small talk. Momo tried to weave in some technical questions about his quirk and hers. Much to her surprise he understood a lot more chemistry than he should have and could explain the mechanics of his powers in much greater detail than she first thought.

They parted ways at the front gate. Momo had a limo after all to catch. A fact that Izuku merely summed up in one phrase: "Oh, right, you're rich." A shrug had followed that statement. Her wealth didn't seem to matter much to him.

In the limo ride back home she had the entire series of events on replay. It felt good to get rid of this nervousness she had being near him. It was also great to find or well make someone that could now understand the burden of knowledge her quirk required. Momo could for sure call him her friend and if they continued probably be her best friend soon enough.

If she was honest with herself she had a bit of crush on him. There was more than enough to like about him and he was easy on the eyes. But after replaying today's events he hadn't made any real attempt to flirt with her. He had the usual quips but they were fun and harmless. Its also not like he didn't have opportunity. If anything that just made it more concrete that he wasn't interested in her that way.

If she said he wasn't disappointed it would have been a lie. But oh well, she would take a friend instead.


	9. The Face of Evil is Hands

Lunch had just ended and the class was returning. Aizawa was waiting for them to get seat. Which was odd. Like people should be worried odd. "We're going to holds today's hero training at the USJ," Aizawa stated with a picture popping up behind him. 'Unforeseen Simulation Joint' was what the abbreviation stood for. It didn't mean anything to the up and coming heroes.

"There's a bus waiting outside. I expect you all down and in costume in 10 minutes," Aizawa said exiting the room. Momo took charge of the room immediately.

"Get your home costume and get out single file! No need to rush 10 minutes is pretty generous," Momo commanded standing up from her spot.

That caught most of the class by surprise. Izuku waited for a few people to get done before getting his suitcase. He made sure to watch the class and make sure no one had problems. Izuku's black suit was easy to put on and the metal parts were a snap, quite literally.

Izuku was out first and got to the bus. "Open seating nice; Momo will like that."

The rest of the students caught up in time. "Alright guys single file I've got a seating plan in mind," Momo said to everyone.

"Its open seating, just come in and take a spot," Izuku said waving everyone from a window. Yaoyorozu sighed and just waved everyone on.

The USJ was on campus but like a 10 minute drive from the school. The UA campus was about the size of a small city in scope. "Midoriya-san, your combat suit is growing on me. Its just so manly and useful," Kirishima pointed out smacking Izuku's shoulder.

That cheered Izuku up. "Its a titanium-tungsten composite. Its for the recoil from my quirk," he explained tapping the metal.

"You mean my quirk," Katsuki snarled.

"Its his quirk now. You have your own and he has his," Momo rebutted glaring at him.

"Its still my quirk," Katsuki retorted venom is his voice.

Apparently, Aizawa had heard enough and ended the conversation, "Whether its your or not doesn't matter. You still have your quirk and you're going to develop it differently from his. What matters is that he's here with everyone else trying to become a hero."

The group of students were tense and a tension in the air was made. They unloaded from the bus as soon as they arrived. The group entered the large stadium.

The space hero Thirteen was waiting for them. "Welcome, heroes-in-training! This is the USJ. Here we're going to learn how to apply our quirks to rescue operations," it explained gesturing out to the whole area. Aizawa had asked the space hero about All Might. Izuku noticed he held up three fingers and made some kind of excuse. _So All Might used up his limit_, Izuku noted.

Uraraka was just fangirling over the space hero. "You must really like, Thirteen?" Izuku asked standing next to her.

"Ya, he's the one that inspired me the most to be a hero. He's just so cool fighting natural disasters and rescuing people!" Uraraka had sparkles in her eyes.

Thirteen rose its voice addressing the whole class again, "Yesterday, you learned how to use your quirks and cooperate towards a single objective. Now today this will be part rescue part restraint. I don't need to remain everyone just how dangerous some of our quirks can be. This is why rescue training is done so we can gauge what and how to use our quirk to help."

A black portal opened in the center of the USJ. A man with hands on his face walked through. Another being of shadow similar to the portal came through as well. Then dozens of villains followed them. The hand villain looked to his portal associate, "Kurogiri, I don't see All Might! He's supposed to be here!"

"A minor setback, Shigaraki-san, we still have some hostages," the portal villain replied.

"A good point. Let's see if a few dead kids will bring him out of hiding!" the insane hand villain shouted.

Aizawa stood at the top of the stairs. "Is this part of the test too?" Iida asked seeing the villains flood in.

"No, those are real villains! Thirteen protect them. Kaminari anything from the outside?" Aizawa asked putting on his googles.

"Nothing, we're getting jammed," The electric teen replied.

"I'll hold them off. We need to get someone out of here and get a message back to UA!" Aizawa shouted before descending the stairs.

"Let me help you," Izuku asked standing at the top of the stairs.

"Protect them, Midoriya!" Aizawa dashed into the courtyard.

The portal villain appeared behind the group. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. We can't have any of you escaping and ruining this execution," his voice was a bit disembodied.

"I'll handle him, run!" Thirteen shouted flipping open its finger. The black hole quirk activated pulling in Kurogiri's wisps but not moving him much. Iida started to bolt along with the rest of the students. Izuku stayed put he was torn between running and assisting. He had the power to do so and felt a need to help.

"What a powerful quirk. To bad you're not used to using it in combat!" Kurogiri made a portal in front of him and behind Thirteen.

Iida was nearly to the door. Portals appeared below some of the slower students. Izuku was watching as all the events unfolded so quickly. The instant Thirteen's black hole came through the portal, Izuku made his own attack. The green-haired teen was on the other side of the portal. Green lightning surged and an explosion was detonated through the portal. Kurogiri was not expecting this. The green blast blew him back and forced him to relocate. Iida, Uraraka, Sato, and Sero were still left among the students.

Thirteen was incapacitated from their quirk. Kurogiri appeared near Izuku. "That's a strong quirk. Nearly got me," Kurogiri stated. The neck brace and his clothes were much worse for wear. The fire from his blast had eaten a dozen or so holes in his clothes. The heat had left his brace uncomfortably hot.

"Then you won't mind if I use it again on you!" Izuku shouted feinting a blast forward. The portal villain tried the same trick on Thirteen. The teen planned ahead for this and directed a psychic bullet through the portal behind him. Despite a low amount of force it still dented the metal brace.

"What was that?" Kurogiri looked to the other student. Iida and Sato were trying to pry the door open. The villain rose one arm.

"You think you can ignore me?" Izuku shouted reaching through the portal behind him. The teen made contact with the metal brace and Kurogiri started to float away. Izuku pulled back his hand just before the portal closed. The teen leveled around explosion at Kurogiri. Now the portal villain was fed up with Izuku. A portal opened below the teen. Izuku touched his face out of reaction. He flew upward getting sucked into a portal anyway.

"What a nuisance," Kurogiri looked to the door and Iida was out of sight. The portal villain grimaced and retreated.

Izuku found himself free falling. Somehow his Force Nullification had been turned off. He was near the roof and falling. Out of instinct he touched his face. The teen floated in the air and examined the situation below.

Todoroki was at the landslide zone and doing fine. Momo, Kaminari, and Jirou were at the mountain zone and being overwhelmed. He couldn't see into the conflagration zone or the ruins zone. Mineta and Asui were at the flood zone. They were about to be villain food. Izuku decided to help them first.

He blasted over to them picking up quite a bit of speed. The teen slammed into the boat feet first. The entire boat rocked from the impact. He released Force Nullification. "Are you guys okay?" Izuku asked looking at a wide-eyed Mineta and Asui.

"We're saved!" the little teen called out hugging Izuku.

"I've got to admit, that was good timing," She sighed in relief.

"I'm going to get both of you out of this. There's no reason for us to pick fights with the villains on their home turf," Izuku reasoned.

"What's the plan?" Asui asked.

"I'll carry both of you out here and drop you off with everyone else," Izuku stated less choice more of the only option. Asui and Mineta nodded.

"Asui-san on my back, Mineta I'll carry," Izuku said kneeling down in front of her. He felt her weight against him. He clasped his hand around her thigh making her weightless. "Hold tight. Asui-san you're weightless right now," he warned standing up. She wrapped her legs and arms around him.

Midoriya smirked looking at Mineta, "I'll say sorry in advance."

"For what-!" Mineta started to ask before Midoriya grabbed him and launched him into the air. He touched his face and used his explosions to intercept the purple teen. Mineta was screaming a bit.

"Like I said sorry!" Midoriya apologized.

\- Mountain Zone – After the Portal -

Momo was momentarily disoriented by the portal and sudden change in locale. Kaminari and Jirou were with her. Villains started to circle around. She knew it was her duty to protect her fellow students. She made a steel quarterstaff and took point. Kaminari stood next to her fists raised.

"Can you make a sword?" Jirou asked standing to Momo left. A handle jutted from her side and Jirou took hold of it before pulling. "Alright, I like our odds!" Jirou shouted. The villains seem amused that they thought they could defend themselves. Jokes on them the students could easily defend themselves.

The first wave rushed them. Kaminari zapped anyone that made contact with him. Momo prioritized fighters that used weapons or longer ranged quirks. Jirou was just thrashing anyone that got close enough.

"Kaminari-san, you mentioned something about your full power yesterday," Momo asked striking a villain in the before whipping around the staff and smashing another villain's chest.

"Yeah, 1.3 million volts, but I can't aim it at all! It just explodes from me!" Kaminari replied punching one villain before grabbing a hold on another. Both got fried by his electricity. He was like a living stun gun.

"Okay, I have a plan! Jirou cover me this will take some time!" Momo called out to Jirou who merely nodded.

\- Landslide Zone – After the Portal -

This turn out of events had just annoyed Shoto more than anything. The villains he'd run into so far weren't much of a fight. They were weaklings as far as Shoto was concerned. His goal had become 'find out what they're here for'. So far most of the villains were just idiots. Granted he wasn't giving them much opportunity to talk before leaving them a villicle.

"Okay, talk or I'll make sure frostbite sets in," Shoto threatened another block of a villain. He didn't want to hurt the villain but they had made their life choices so they have to deal with a little frostbite if they aren't going to cooperate.

"Alright, alright, kid, I'll talk!" he replied panicking.

"Good. Then why are you guys here?" Shoto questioned staring down the villain.

"We were promised revenge! We all want to kill All Might!" the villain shouted. This was all Shoto needed. He completed the ice block making sure not to give the man frostbite.

His next destination was the courtyard where the hand villain was at.

\- Ruins Zone – After the Portal -

Katsuki loved to fight and the villains didn't get it through their thick skulls that they were outclassed. Kirishima was with him and proving his usefulness. The blonde teen was relentless. It was cathartic letting loose.

"What do you think these guys are after?" Kirishima asked pounding a guy through a wall.

"Does it matter?! We get to crack some skulls and its all in defense," Katsuki grinning blowing up a villain sending them through a wall.

"Its probably a good idea to know what they're after. You might miss the important fight," Kirishima reasoned blocking a strike effortlessly.

Katsuki growled the red-haired teen was right. He could spend all day blowing these guys up and getting nowhere. First he had to find a villain that looked half way intelligent and hopefully a coward.

No sooner had he thought that did one such opportunity present itself. The villain had been matching the two students obliterate the other villains and realize it was kind of pointless to fight them.

Katsuki had pinned the person to the ground and had a palm inches from his face, "Why are you here?"

"W-we're h-here to k-kill All Might! Please don't hurt me!" the villain pleaded. Katsuki nodded and then punched the villain in the face. Hard enough to knock the villain out instantly.

"You hear that? Let's go visit that handy bastard," Katsuki declared earning a nod from Kirishima.

\- Downpour Zone – After the Portal -

Tokoyami was not having the time of his live. It was raining sideways, diagonal ways, up sometimes, and down more or less all the time and randomly. KO-ing villains via sneak attacks or outright overpowering them was dreary, but it seemed like there was always more. The wind didn't make the downpour zone any funner. Koda had been ported with him and proved to be a valuable ally.

At this point he just wanted to get somewhere and get some cover. He was soaked through and through. Villains made that plan much harder, but nonetheless he had to do his part and take down as many as he could.

\- Near the fountain – Shigaraki -

Aizawa was sure an impressive hero, but he was out of his depth. It infuriated Tomura that such violence was acceptable. It was infuriating that society found that violence acceptable. Kurogiri showed up next to him.

"Bad news. A student escaped," the portal man stated. Fury filled Tomura. That was a colossal failure. If he wasn't the ticket out of this little scenario Kurogiri would be dead. It wasn't uncommon to sacrifice a pawn or two, but he couldn't risk sacrificing the queen.

"Our time frame has been accelerated. Nomu kill him," Tomura commanded pointing to Aizawa. The hulking creature with an exposed brain and a beak face moved. It had been dormant behind Tomura this whole time. It was his trump card to kill All Might. "Kurogiri, if you weren't so important for our exit strategy I'd kill you myself!" Tomura raged.

"I'm sorry, Shigaraki-san, there was this student that had more than one quirk. He was powerful too," Kurogiri apologized.

"More than one quirk?! How's that possible I thought Master was the only one like that!" Tomura shouted seeing a green blast in the courtyard.

\- Back to Izuku -

He had just dropped off Asui and Mineta. "Uraraka, Sato, keep them safe. I'm going to go help Aizawa-sensei!" Before anyone could protest Midoriya was off. He rocketed over to Aizawa just in time to see the hulking creature move. It was fast. Almost too fast for him to react. Aizawa tried to defend himself, but the creature pulled Aizawa to him. Midoriya had just made it in time to let loose a massive green blast.

It was an 75% blast and it hurt. The hulking creature was caught completely off guard. It was sent flying a few dozen meters away. The fire had burned its body, but the concussive force did nothing.

"What are you doing, Midoriya?!" Aizawa shouted.

"Providing you aid. He's coming again. I'll draw his fire you see if you can strangle that thing," Izuku stated earning a nod from Aizawa. It was a pretty good plan for only a split second amount of info.

The hulking beast charged headlong at Izuku. He reached out aiming to intercept the fist thrown. His pads made contact with the creature activating Force Nullification. He nearly retched on the spot, but held fast. The beast's speed and power had been rendered useless. Izuku surged power in his other hand and put a palm on the beast's chest. Another 75% explosion was let loose. The beast careened across the courtyard smashing into a building. Izuku immediately released his Force Nullification and determined that was all he could use.

The portal villain and the hand villain had joined the fray. The portal villain would prove to be the harder of the two to deal with. Aizawa couldn't turn off his quirk, but could turn off the hand guy's quirk. The hand villain had rushed Aizawa while the portal villain was keeping Izuku busy.

Izuku was counting and dodging the portals. It looked like he could open 10 portals simultaneously. He also had the power to decide which way the portal 'faced'. Izuku had been using his telekinetic attacks to determined which portals lead where. He was also trying to expand his telekinetic sensory to include the portals.

Aizawa was handling the hand villain just fine. If not overwhelming him fairly easily.

Midoriya had added explodo-bullets to his assault on the portal villain. Even if he managed to redirect the bullet, it was rendered harmless due Izuku's armor and minor resistance he had. He was still winning just denting and hurting the portal villain with every successful explodo-bullet and psychic bullet.

The hand villain shouted, "Kurogiri, some help over here! This guys a handful!"

"I must apologize Shigaraki, but this twerp is holding my attention completely. He's too powerful to give him any chances," Kurogiri stated taking another bullet to his chest.

"Nomu!" Shigaraki shouted. The hulking beast known as Nomu was blindly fast. It was playing with them before. A hand print had been cauterized into Nomu's chest. Clearly, Izuku could damage it with hot enough flames, but those explosions only reached that temperature at basically point-blank range. And shaping the blast took too much time.

All of Kurogiri's portal closed and Nomu was on Izuku. He must have pissed off the beast. "Oh shit," Izuku whispered before the beast punched him. Its fist was so large it extended from his mouth to chest.

Midoriya could feel himself rag doll. His jaw and chest bone had been crushed by the hit. Thankfully, his quirk was his saving grace or at least his new one. Izuku's jaw bone snapped into place. He felt the pain again. His chest bone mended and became whole again. He was out of breath, but alive. The metal on his chest had been crushed by the impact. The soreness subsided and his body was back to peak shape. His newest quirk was Super Regeneration. Didn't stop any of the pain from the healing that ensued, but definitely could prevent fatal wounds. For once his power storage had been empty. Super regeneration must have taken from that first. This was due to a conflict with Momo's quirk. He hadn't learned how to use it and its storage component.

A hand was on his chest. He had closed his eyes due to the pain. He looked up to see Uraraka. "Midoriya are you okay?!" she shouted bringing him back. He sat up making her jump. His vision zoomed in, Aizawa was not holding his own.

"Come on, let's go!" He jumped to his feet and pulled her with him. "I'll tank the beast. I need to you stop it! He's super strong so be ready for that! If you can float him he'll be out for the count!" Izuku stated touching his face and fully clasping his hand on her. He blasted off taking both of them with.

Tomura had taken a back seat watching Nomu. Aizawa was trying his best, but Nomu was just pummeling him. This delighted Tomura greatly. That's when he spotted the green-haired student. The student was rocketing towards them. He had someone else in tow. At this point, he wanted to kill the student personally.

He was about to move when ice suddenly crept up his leg. The man looked around to spot a white-haired kid with ice and frost emanating from his right side. Kurogiri was the next one to get a surprise attack. A blonde hair kid had gotten the drop on him, "Use your portal even once and I'll blow you to kingdom come."

_Shit! These kids cornered us!_ Tomura thought in annoyance. "Nomu, get frosty," Tomura commanded pointing to the white-haired kid. Just as Nomu bolted at the white-haired kid the green one intercepted him. Nomu dodged the regular blast and punched the green-haired kid.

The green-haired kid skid across the ground. His arms had been broken protecting himself. Bones and blood was visible around him. Then much to Tomura dismay the super regeneration that Nomu had kicked on for the kid. He winced as the bones sunk back into his skin. "Oh come on! I call hax on that. What did you do copy his quirk?!" Tomura shouted.

That's when the blonde spoke up, "Damn right, villain, whatever power you have will be his to use if you touch him." The blonde was laughing evilly at his own comment.

"That's so unfair for a quirk like to be on your side. That's not allowed by the rules! You can't have more than one god tier power at play on the field at once!" Tomura was delirious.

The pain was blinding, but Izuku grit his teeth and got back up. Uraraka was near to Nomu. Todoroki was trying to slow down the beast by freezing him. The beast's regeneration was faster than the frostbite. Todoroki was at the end of his rope. _If he'd just use his flame he could take down that monster!_ Izuku cursed the white-haired teen.

Knowing the plan, the green-haired teen shot into action. "Uraraka, this is your chance don't miss it!" She said blasting past her.

Ochako was torn. She had to act but never before had so much pressure been on her. Izuku's plan was great and if it worked they could win the fight. But she didn't know if she could do it. He was relying on her. That's when Izuku shouted to her about giving her a chance. Before she knew it her legs were running and her mind was racing. Instinct had taken over and she was determined to see this through to the end.

She held up her hands ready to apply her quirk at a moments notice. Todoroki froze part of the creature giving Izuku a split second opening to blast it.

Its ire was focused back on Izuku. She knew he would have to take another hit. More pain than any of them could imagine. She was close. Uraraka lunged at Nomu hand stretched out. Her pads connected with his lower back. Mission success.

Looking over she saw Izuku on the ground his chest punched in. He was struggling to breath as his bones and muscles moved back into place. Looking to Nomu once more she pushed him up and away. The beast was using up 85% of her capacity just to hold it in the air. If it started to struggle she would have minutes before it broke free.

Kneeling next to Izuku she felt his chest bones move. Whatever quirks were trying to keep him alive was being prevented by his armor. Uraraka pulled and ripped at the rubber under armor. Then all at once the chest armor and rubber layer ripped off. He was breathing again. "Thank you, Uraraka-san," Izuku wheezed.

The villain known as Shigaraki was frozen up to his thighs. Todoroki got over to Izuku, "How is he?"

"He's fine for the most part. I can't believe he took three hits from that monstrosity," Uraraka replied.

"Help me up," Izuku asked straining to stand. Uraraka and Todoroki complied helping him to his feet.

"Todoroki-san get over to Aizawa-sensei. He needs treatment. Uraraka-san how much longer?" Izuku asked pointing a palm at Shigaraki.

Uraraka whispered, "A few minutes at most. He's heavy and stopping even the smallest movements is eating a lot of my potential."

"How was it, Shigaraki? Did you enjoy fighting the students of UA? This was a mistake wasn't it? Because if you had fought All Might there would be no way to you could have beaten him," Izuku mused grinning.

The hand villain slapped the ice and it turned to water. He lunged for Bakugo. Bakugo rose up a palm giving Kurogiri a moment to escape. A portal opened in front of Shigaraki and behind Bakugo. Izuku coated the villains hand in psychic energy. The hand made contact with Katsuki and nothing happened.

"Clever, chosen one," Shigaraki snarled seeing Izuku charge at him, "Nomu get down here!"

The beast convulsed until Uraraka had to break her hold. The situation looked dire at that point.

Then their savior made his appearance. All Might declared, "Fear not for I am here!" There was no classic smile on his face. He was mad. All Might vanished from view. Several villains still standing got KO-ed. He was making his way to them curving a path of justice.

* * *

Drakonite227: Will be posting the chapters from Ao3 and trying to catch up somewhat quickly.


	10. The Face of Heroism is a Cute Brunette

\- Mountain Zone – Post All Might Appearance -

"Do you feel that, villains? All Might showed up and you're all about to lose," Kaminari taunted.

Momo was ready to develop her ace, "Jirou-san get under the blanket! Kaminari-san as soon as we're under let loose."

"What are you going to do?" Kaminari asked watching her back bloat. The rainbow like effect from her quirk bloated at her back. Then the item exploded from her tearing her hero costume. It was a white insulating sheet. It was designed to protect them from his electrical discharge. "Now!" Momo shouted as Jirou huddled up next to under the blanket.

"Time to shine! Indiscriminate 1.3 million volts!" Kaminari shouted before an explosion of electricity gave from him. Dozens upon dozens of villain got caught up in the electric blast. Their bodies got scorched from the intense power. Unfortunately, this left Kaminari defenseless.

Momo got up from the blanket. One arm over her bosom to prevent anyone from seeing anything. She had abandoned her staff in favor of a steel baton. Jirou was blushing a bit seeing Momo like that.

Their fight wasn't over yet. Kaminari was derping out having fried his brain. Many villains they had beaten earlier were getting up.

Then one guy in particular pulled himself out of the dirt, "At the end of your rope, kids?" Electricity coursed over his skin. He was the jammer.

"Not even close!" Momo got into a defensive stance and beckoned the villain to attack. Jirou looked at her like she was crazy. Maybe she was. But maybe a bit of Izuku's heroism was rubbing off on her. "Jirou-san protect Kaminari-san!" Momo whipped her steel weapon at a villain getting up. The weapon clocked them right in the face. She made a new weapon: a wooden long sword. It didn't have much of a cutting edge but wood had another property that made it ideal: it was a very bad conductor. She would be able to strike without worry of getting shocked. She ran headlong at the electrical mini-boss. Other villain tried to get in her way, all dispatched with single strong strike.

He blocked her first hit. He wasn't some two bit thug. "You're going to fight with a handicap? How childish!" the man laughed going on the offensive. Momo could only block or dodge. Protecting her dignity was becoming a bit of a hassle. She didn't want to give him the joy of seeing something that virtually no one else has seen. The ground rocked from the vibrations coming from the courtyard.

"You feel that?! All Might is here and he's fighting your leader. Its only a matter of time before he's up here!" Momo shouted earning a grimace from the villain.

"Then I'd best get going. The name's Amp and although wood is bad conductor it doesn't full stop it!" Amp shouted grabbing the wooden weapon and channeling electricity through it. It wasn't random either. It was targeted somehow. Her muscles were paralyzed by the current. "It was fun, but too da loo!"

By the time she was able to move he was gone. She cursed her uselessness and got back to Jirou. They had someone to protect after all.

\- Courtyard -

The veteran hero took but a moment to survey the situation. Nomu was charging headlong at Izuku. All Might in a blink of an eye relocated many of the students. The veteran had moved Bakugo, Uraraka, Aizawa, and Todoroki first. Izuku was left out in the open. There was a split second decision that had to be made. He let his instinct take over. The green-haired let loose an explosion at Shigaraki. He then stepped to the side and let loose another explosion getting him airborne. A portal had redirected his explosion to behind where he was.

The Nomu took a punch to the face so hard it sent him back into the duo villains. All Might cracked his knuckles, "I'll give you one chance to surrender villains. Otherwise I'm going to have to beat you into the dirt."

"Nomu, get him! This is what you were made for!" Shigaraki shouted. Izuku landed some distance behind All Might. He was exhausted and knelt down. The beast charged All Might.

When their fists clashed shock waves ensued. The air pressure alone would make it impossible to get next to them. The exchange of punches increased in power. A minute or two passed of this unreal battle. Izuku was straining to keep up with their movements.

There was a throw and an epic dropkick on the Nomu. Then they had a stalemate. All Might was hand to hand with Nomu pushing him back. Shigaraki was about to move and mess up the whole thing. Izuku aimed his finger at the hand man. An explodo-bullet ripped across the plaza. 60% power. Shigaraki didn't see it coming. The shot nailed him right in the face knocking a hand from him.

"Father," the man whispered as he went to retrieve his hand. Another shot rang out. A portal was opened in defense.

Then much to their surprise Izuku waved his other hand and the portal moved. It had taken the green-haired boy some trial and error, but the portal had a super small surface area and presence in the real world. He grabbed that presence and could move it with telekinesis.

Another shot nailed Kurogiri. Denting his neck brace. All Might nodded mentally thanking Izuku. All Might pushed the Nomu off and then uppercut the beast. The pro hero redoubled his efforts kicking up a tidal wave of air pressure. It was pointless for Izuku to use his powers and just watched. Bakugo and Uraraka did the same.

"He has shock absorption! You can't beat him!" Shigaraki yelled over the air pressure.

"Shock absorption, huh? Its not shock nullification so it has a limit!" All Might shouted his speed becoming a blur to the onlookers. The Nomu was gaining size from the relentless barrage of hits. He was hitting him so fast that its super regeneration started to fall behind.

"We have a saying at this school and I'll show you what it means! Go Beyond! Plus Ultra!" All Might shouted. A hard left hook dazed the creature back a few steps. All Might then wound up the mother of all uppercuts. White smoke or energy was coming from his fist. The uppercut connected with so much force and energy that Nomu's body glowed a yellow color. It ballooned trying to handle the extreme power. Nomu's body lost and the force kept going. The Nomu rocketed into the ceiling at a blinding speed. It's body impacted the roof and then exploded through the side of the dome.

This was it; All Might had hit his limit. He cursed himself for being so reckless earlier in the day. He still had an ace in the hole. He could bluff and if need be get Midoriya's help. "You've lost villain. Just admit defeat and give up," All Might challenged them. Izuku had gotten up and walked over the pro hero.

"Surrender or face me next!" Izuku shouted his vision wavering. Even All Might could tell that he was at the end of his rope. They just had to buy some more time. _Time to sell an idea_, All Might smirked.

"Didn't you hear my understudy? This guy here is going to become my successor and he's got one hell of a quirk," All Might boasted steam coming off him.

"Why you arrogant hero types. You think you can just get carried and get all the gear huh? Well, we'll see about that!" Shigaraki shouted bounding towards them.

"Nobodies getting carried. I'm aiming to be the Symbol of Peace and you're just a stepping stone for me!" Izuku retorted standing in front of All Might and taking a combat stance. A few explosions roared. Uraraka came to a skidding halt next to Izuku with Katsuki still flying in.

All Might was floored by the bravado these three students showed. Then even had the power to back it up too. He looked at Uraraka and saw her determination.

Shigaraki was on them when a bullet sailed through his hand. Then two more through his leg and another in his other hand. He fell onto his back unable to move. In the distance, Snipe had shown up along with all the other teachers of UA.

"We have to retreat now!" Kurogiri stated making a portal below Shigaraki and teleporting himself.

Izuku fell to his knees. "Its over. Uraraka would you mind giving me an arm?" he asked chuckling.

"Of course! Let's get you to the teachers and get some aid," Uraraka took up one of his arms and helped him walk.

"Join them Bakugo. I'm going to take a moment to rest," All Might bluffed moving ever so slowly. The blonde said something along the lines of 'whatever' and went to help Izuku.

Katsuki wasn't so petty that he wouldn't help a friend in need. But he was furious he had stolen so much of the limelight. All Might himself even declared the green-haired twerp the next Symbol. This made Katsuki even madder if that was possible. He wanted to sock the giant oaf for even uttering those words. But his friend was barely moving. He had to help no questions asked and no hassle given.

Round face had made one hell of a heroic move. She was the one after all that suggested they get back into the fray. She even made the ballsy idea that he would launch her into combat and she'd make sure to 'stick the landing'. Her words not his.

Regardless, she had earned a small iota of his respect. Icy Hot had been watching from a distance and marveled at the battle just like the rest of them. This is what it meant to be pro. This is what being the most powerful is like. This made Katsuki want to try all the more.

The teachers were binding and securing the hoards of villains. They had recovered all the students from every zone they were in. Izuku was glad no one was hurt. Chiyo was furious with him. "Do you even understand what you did to your body?!"

"You're fat and muscle was getting devoured by your quirk! You're muscles were wasting from what appears to be malnutrition!" Chiyo smacked the teenage with her staff.

"Could you lend me or point me in the direction of a few medical books that would help me understand what's going on and what I need?" Izuku asked bowing to the doctor.

She looked annoyed but gave in, "Sure, I can provide you a list of reading material."

"Thank you, recovery girl," Izuku said standing straight again. He spotted the group of students and walked over to them. They were all recanting their tales and fights from today.

While it would be fun for Izuku he thought it wasn't the best time. He was still a bit of an outsider. "Izuku-san! How are you even standing? After the story I heard I'd expect you to be on a stretcher," Momo had a worried look on her face. As if was the most normal thing in the world, she came over and hugged him. "You need to be more careful! You're not invincible," Momo chastised pointing her finger in his face.

Izuku was blushing. She probably didn't realize what she had done, so he let her have this one. But man are they soft. He averted his eyes and whispered, "Momo-hime, your leotard." It was her turn to blush and close up a coat she had been given. Momo chuckled and whispered, "Its fine if its you." It was more of an offhanded statement then an admission of anything. Much like when people think out loud.

Katsuki punched him the shoulder, "We almost had them. If it wasn't for that Nomu creature they would have been done for."

"I know what you mean. That thing was made to kill All Might," Izuku replied smirking.

"I know, man! That finishing move was like something out of a video game!" Kirishima mimicked the punch All Might made.

"Its crazy to think he has all that power," Katsuki said distantly.

"I know one thing for certain," Izuku stated getting many of his classmates' attention, "There's one hell of a mountain between here and the top." Most everyone agreed with that sentiment.

The rest of the day was spent between answering questions with the police, the teachers, or both. Everyone had gotten a thorough physical and psychological examination from Recovery Girl. While this was a traumatic experience the staff of UA wanted to make sure no long term side effects would emerge.

Since everyone wanted to be a hero of some kind it was no surprise that virtually no lasting psychological effects would be had. Other than minor bruising, cuts, and scrapes all the students checked out physically too. Even Izuku the one that had taken the brunt of assault had only suffered minor muscle loss.

All Might had a new conversation he needed to start. He knew in his gut who should be the successor. Ochako Uraraka, the girl with the determined look and a hidden fire in her soul. It was after class and the student were about to head home. He'd have to reveal his secrets another time. He'd have to tell Izuku his decision. He'll probably be training her along side All Might. After all Izuku was his spiritual successor.

The large man had been waiting outside for the brunette. When he finally spotted her, "Uraraka-san, may I have a word with you?" Her look was of panic first. A healthy reaction.

Ochako's heart was racing. All Might of all people had just asked for her. He was the greatest hero of all time and he wanted to have a chat with her. Her first thought was to the USJ and just how recklessly she had acted. Even Izuku dragged her along, but at some point she started to move for herself. Her mind was panicking more than sure that's what he wanted to 'chat about'. _He's going to chew me out isn't he? OMG the suspense is the worst! _She screamed in her head. She had been following him to the teacher's lounge.

The more private setting only drove her thoughts more crazed. All Might got her a stool and he sat down on a couch. On the coffee table he placed two tea cups. "Tea?" He asked in the most casual tone imaginable.

That broke Ochako, "OMGI'msosorry!Forinterveningandgettingintheway!Pleasedon'tchastisemetoomuch!" Uraraka bowed her heart threatening to beat out of her chest.

All Might was just in awe of the speed that was said and was mentally going through it. He chuckled getting her attention.

"I have no intentions to chastise you or criticize the actions the three of you made. The fact is if the three of you weren't there it'd been a much different story," All Might smiled waving her worry away.

She shoulders slack and the weight on her chest vanished. It had been a lingering worry after the whole ordeal. "Now, I won't, but Aizawa might have a few choice words for you three," All Might laughed getting a nervous chuckle from her.

"Then what am I doing here?" Uraraka asked.

"Something more important," Steam was bellowing off All Might at this point. Then his form collapsed in a fog of smoke. "Argh, I hate how dramatic this thing can be," the voice of All Might coughed. A skeletal figure had replaced All Might. Blood was on his lips and on his hand. "I'm sorry to show you this, but I need to, to illustrate my point," he said coughing up more blood.

It dawned on Uraraka that this skeletal man was All Might. It wasn't a doppelganger or another quirk. This was what All Might really looked like. He was frail and dying. That hit home for her. "All Might what happened?"

He lifted up his shirt showing her an absolutely grotesque looking repair job. It was sewn and bolted together. She was so horrified that she just didn't react. "5 years ago, I fought a villain and he did this to me. My entire respiratory system is damaged and half my stomach is missing. Thanks to this I can only use my power for 3 hours before I revert to this," he gestured to himself.

"That's horrible, but why show me?" Uraraka was a bit confused at why she should know this and then another thought crept in, 'who else knows?'.

"I was really dreading this decision, but you're much more level-headed than I would have imagined," All Might grinned.

"I just stared death in the face, so this is a bit of a slower pace," Uraraka replied trying to lighten the mood.

"I want you to be my successor," All Might stood up and held out his hand. A ball of energy manifested in it.

"Isn't Midoriya your successor?" Uraraka cocked her head.

"In spirit, but he declined being my true successor. I have chosen you to pass the torch too," All Might explained sitting down. Now she was confused _a torch?_

"What are you talking about?" she was bewildered.

"My quirk. Is not what many think. At its most basic level its just the ability to stockpile power, but it can be passed on to another. Each time the torch is passed the stockpile grows in size. Now it is like a raging inferno. I'm offering you my power. I'm offering you the chance to be the 9th wielder of One For All," All Might clenched his fist.

His charisma was off the charts. This was a lot of information to process. The ability to pass on a quirk was new. It opened many doors that Uraraka had thought were just fiction.

She needed to know, "Why me then? Bakugo, Iida, Yaoyorozu are all better candidates then me."

"Earlier today, did you ever find yourself just running without thinking or acting out of instinct?" All Might asked grinning at her.

"Yeah, after Midoriya inspired me to act; my body just knew what to do next. I don't know what but I was just moving and acting only watching events on replay after the fact," Uraraka explained.

"All famous heroes have a similar story: 'My body just started to move on its own'. That is the essence of true heroism," All Might stated seeing her eyes dart around. She was trying to reject the idea. Ochako was only a hero for her parents. She wasn't heroic like Midoriya or Bakugo.

She was about to speak when he held up a single finger. "Who was that had the plan to launch themselves at me, hoping to come to my aid? No less in my most dire time?" All Might inquired earning a bit of silence from her.

"Why me?" Ochako said tearing up a bit.

"Because I think you have more heroism in your blood than the average pro. I saw that look on your face today. So much determination and fire. That's the face people want to see when you're saving them! If that's the face you can make staring death down then I think you more than qualify to be my successor," All Might assured her.

She thought about it for a moment. If she got anything like his power, then the possibility of helping people dramatically improved. She would be more than her quirk. That kind of power would at least give her the means to help and save a lot of people. Deep down that's what she wanted to be.

"I accept. Where do we start!?" Uraraka said standing up. All Might grinned at her.

"I'd say your about 65% of the way there to accept it. These next two weeks are going to be hell for you," All Might gave her one hell of a grin. If she didn't know any better he was going to enjoy watching her transform.

"What's in two weeks?" Ochako asked, "and 65%?"

"You'll find out tomorrow. One For All is powerful. If you're anything below minimally ready I'm afraid your arms and legs would just explode from your body," All Might explained before continuing, "I'll have your new schedule to follow on your desk tomorrow morning. Get some rest."

Ochako grimaced at the thought of her arms and legs exploding. She nodded and excused herself. The brunette had a lot on her mind and a lot more to process. She was about to inherit a power that All Might himself wields.


	11. Creation Is Hard

\- Monday After USJ -

The sun was low in the sky and dusk was almost over. Izuku found himself in the back of a limousine. He was sitting opposite to Momo. She had offered her home as the training ground for her quirk. This time Izuku made sure to phone his mom and Mei to apologize for getting home late and that he was at a friend's house. He made sure to leave out the part where his friend was a girl just they wouldn't get the wrong impression of the situation.

Momo couldn't wait to share how her quirk worked, "This is about an 30 minute drive, so I'll get started right away. I don't think you'll master it off the bat but we can at least get the ball rolling."

"One second, let me get out my notebook for myself," Izuku requested rifling through his backpack. He had reserved one notebook just for him. He knew he'd get a few quirks along the way of becoming the Symbol, but even now had more than expected.

"First, I'll start with what you called the passive component: my body stores fat lipids to be used for the creation power. I have to eat around three times more sustenance before my body tells me I'm full. You're storage limit will probably be around two times," Momo explained giving him an opening to write down that info.

"That would explain why lunch wasn't exactly filling. I'll have to adjust to it. Is it a feeling or can you quantify just how much storage you have and how much is left?" Izuku inquired jotting down the possibilities.

"Hmm, never thought about trying to measure it. Its more like a feeling. I know when my battery is at capacity and I know when its been drawn on too much," Momo replied thinking about how she could even measure it.

"That's good to know its strong enough a feeling that its easy to read and plan with. I need to rewire your quirk and another. Would you be willing to help me with that? I might require harming me though," Izuku frowned knowing how insane of a request that was.

"I don't really want to hurt you, but if it will help. Then I'll stomach it the best I can," Momo nodded before changing the subject, "You had a lot of medical textbooks with you at lunch today."

"Yup, trying to figure out how this super regeneration works. Based on my best guess it works like this: It can simulate cell growth for minor damage. This would be anything that doesn't required very specialized cells. Now in the case of severe damage instead of simulate growth, it wholesale turns fat or muscle into stem cells. Using those stem cells it can repair pretty much anything that gets damaged. I'm fairly certain it could fix brain damage, but not the memory or coordination loss. Luckily, that beast didn't try to rip off a limb or anything crazy otherwise I'd have lost a lot more muscle tissue," Izuku explained.

"You know my quirk can't make living tissue. So how are you planning on rewiring it?" Momo was curious to see his process.

"I'm going to connect Super Regeneration to your storage component. The dense fat lipids would be perfect as a resource. The problem is that Super Regeneration is unlike all my other quirks," Izuku drawing a diagram of his quirks and how he used them right now. He handed it to her. It was crude but illustrated how it functioned just fine.

"Let me guess: it needs to be active so that you can latch on and do something with it?" Momo guessed.

"Bingo. It'll need to slow and deliberate so I can take the time to reconnect it," Izuku grimaced thinking of a few ways to accomplish that. Momo frowned thinking of what slow and deliberate entailed.

"Let's tackle that once we get to a private setting. For now tell me what your lipid storage is at," Momo requested.

Izuku reached in and felt the quirk. He added that sensory to his growing list. He was low almost uselessly low. "10% or so. Didn't over eat much," He replied getting the feeling to be a secondary thing like breathing. His telekinesis at this point was like another sense. It was easy to just sense objects with it and 'see' around him. His power stockpile was much the same it was just there as a battery waiting to be tapped into. Apparently, it had a limit. It could be depleted, but would return to full in about 6 hours.

This meant a few things to him: one, super regeneration was just making stem cells from pure energy. Two, his other quirks didn't even draw a noticeable amount from it. Three, it could regenerate.

He wanted to try something with it, but that could be saved for another day.

"That's not good. We'll have dinner first then," she smiled at that. Izuku just wondered how that would look to her parents.

The Yaoyorozu estate was much larger than Izuku had thought. It was a legitimate mansion with a driveway that took 3 minutes from the front gate to the front door to drive to. The green-haired teen was just floored by the wealth and power on display.

"Umm, do I really belong here?" Izuku asked looking to Momo.

"Izuku-san, what are you taking about?" Momo replied walking up the stairs to the front door.

Izuku laughed nervously before catching up with her. A man held the door open for them. The foyer was grand as could be. A pair of stair curved up to the second floor. There were five double doors that lead to various wings.

Momo gestured to follow her to the right. After passing through a hallway and study they were in the dining room. It was a double long table. They could sit nearly 18 people at once. Mrs. Yaoyorozu was already in the room chatting with some business executive. Momo tried to exit shealthy, but her mother was too keen.

"How good of you to arrive to dinner early for once," Mrs. Yaoyorozu called out Momo. Izuku could see the disdain on Momo's face. They must have a strained relationship. "And how is this plain gentleman?" she got up and strode over to them. Momo was a splitting image of her mother. Except her mother was a bit taller and well more womanly than Momo some how. Izuku was already 2-3cm shorter than Momo, but her mother was at least 4-5cm taller than Momo, so the height difference felt a bit exaggerated.

"He's a friend from school. He's got a special quirk that I agreed to help him hone," Momo replied meekly. This was a new side of her. She had withdrawn and submissive. Izuku knew that there wasn't any physical abuse, but emotional and psychological abuse could be much worse.

"Izuku Midoriya," he stated bowing.

"Oh, are you that Midoriya?" she was intrigued now.

"If you're referring to the news reports and slime incident, yes. Ma'am, no offense, but those did a poor job," Izuku stated. In a single stride she was near point-blank with him. It was way too close for comfort.

"Hmm, terribly plain," She said examining his face. She grabbed his arm and felt through the school uniform, "Amazing definition." Mrs. Yaoyorozu felt around his shoulders and abdomen nodded as if satisfied. She stepped back only to launch a wickedly fast backhand. Izuku had barely blocked the strike. "Sharp reflexes, almost pro level," she mused turning to Momo.

"I heard a rumor about this young man. I'd like you to confirm it," Mrs. Yaoyorozu more demanded than asked.

Momo nodded a bit of panic setting in on her face. "Symbol of Peace and this young man thinks he can earn it," she left the question to be interpreted. The gaze Momo's mother had was intense.

"H-he's claimed it m-multiple times t-that he's going to be S-symbol of Peace," Momo stuttered nervously.

Izuku decided to end this charade, "The rumors are true, Mrs. Yaoyorozu, I'm going to be the Symbol of Peace. Ask All Might yourself. He'll even agree."

Mrs. Yaoyorozu turned to Izuku, "I admire your passion, but its foolhardy to think as you are you'll achieve that. No one with a villainous quirk like yours will ever ascend to that height. Society won't have it and neither will the elite."

Momo was about to speak up. She was furious to hear that. Izuku held out his hand to silence her. "Then I'll just have to change Society won't I?" Izuku retorted smirking. This apparently was comical to Mrs. Yaoyorozu as she broke out laughing.

It was nearly a minute until she stopped, "I look forward to reading your story. Just make sure that you don't tarnish her too much rising to the top. Now let's eat." That was it. Izuku felt like that was more of an interview for a job rather than a threat. She was scouting his ideas and his potential.

Momo sat at the far end away from her mother. Izuku sat near Momo. She whispered to him, "I'm so sorry. She just makes me so angry and I can't stand up to her at all."

The green-haired teen grabbed Momo's hand, "Its alright. I've had much worse. That was pretty tame actually."

She voice rose over a whisper, "No its not! We're supposed to be heroes! That's supposed to mean kindness, compassion, and belief. Not competition, anger, and misery!" Clearly, her mother had exposed her to the underbelly of heroism. It wasn't all glamour and stardom. It was a cutthroat business that only the best could make it. Izuku had no problem with this at all. He had the passion and power to back up anything he said. It was more of a problem for those hero with semi-useful quirks and not a strong enough work ethic.

"You've got a lot on your mind. I'm here for you. If you want we can just take some time to unwind you," Izuku offered smiling at her.

She smiled back and chuckled, "Unwind me."

He smirked and laughed at her thought. She then whispered, "Usually, I yell at Mineta for being a pervert, but maybe you're one too, secretly." They burst out laughing earning a grin from Mrs. Yaoyorozu.

The meal and entrees were as grand as you would expect from a rich family. It also made sense due to Momo's quirk and now Izuku's.

Izuku ate around four times more food than he had ever had in his life. It was some of the highest quality food he had ever had. Still didn't beat that heartwarming feeling his mom's home cooking gave him. They had spent nearly an hour eating and chatting.

After the meal they excused themselves and Momo lead him to her room. Her room was bigger than his entire apartment. Again rich people and space.

"How are you feeling? You ate way more than I thought you could," Momo asked pulling out two chairs and faced them to each other.

"Full for once since I got your quirk. I'd say I'm 100% or more actually," Izuku sat down pulling out his notebook and making a note or two.

"What do you want to tackle first? Creation or quirk tuning?" Momo offered sitting down opposite to him.

"I think quirk tuning would be the better of the two," Izuku sighed continuing, "You're not going to like this."

"I know I'm not. Hurting people isn't something I want to do. Its not what being a hero is about," Momo frowned making a knife. It was a fairly standard hunting knife. Rolling up his right sleeve he was for the pain. Izuku held out his arm and closed his eyes.

Momo was not happy about cutting her friend. He hadn't deserved it, but it was necessary. She gulped hard and summoned her courage. It would have to be a light cut nothing deep. The blade was fairly sharp being newly minted. She touched the tip of the knife to his forearm. He took a deep breath. She did too. Then the pain would commence. She pressed the knife into his skin just hard enough to see blood. Slowly, she went down his arm. Izuku had clenched his teeth.

The pain was bearable compared to getting broken limbs. Within his quirk space it was running. Super Regeneration was a primal feeling. It was instinct. He isolated its pull and severed the connection with Power Stockpile. It was looking for something else to tether to. He had temporarily halted his regeneration. Something that wasn't missed by Momo and she panicked a bit, if the shaky blade was any indication.

He found Momo's passive side part of her quirk. He allowed it to tether onto her storage component. It latched on and something odd happened. They melded. Izuku let out a sigh of relief and pushed Momo's knife hand away. Then as a precaution he made a connection between the melded quirks and power stockpile, but the connection was designed to be switch on or off at will.

"Thank you. That'll save me a lot of future pain," Izuku opened his eyes. Blood was on the knife. Blood had rolled down his arm and soaked into his pants. She was shaking. It was probably a bit traumatizing to cut up someone like she had just done.

"I think I might be sick," She said dropping the knife. He caught it midair and even held the blood up in a suspended state.

"I'm sorry I had to ask. Do you have a bathroom?" Izuku asked. Momo merely pointed to a door in her room. _Ah of course her own bathroom_, Izuku thought chastising himself for being surprised. He opened the door with telekinesis and got up. He took the knife and floating blood with him.

One spin of the faucet and it was coming out pretty good. First, his arm. He cleaned off all the blood on his arm. Then the knife and floating blood. The floating blood was easy, he just let it go over the sink. The knife was then cleaned next only needing a split second for the water to take the blood off.

What he did next was to make a point, but his straight forward approach would have been jarring if not for the near death experience the previous week. He entered the room knife in hand but backwards. She was still out of it. Just to sell the point he grabbed her shoulder and put the blade's edge about 2 cm from her neck.

"Tag, you're dead," he chuckled getting her attention. At first she looked disgusted that he was taking all of this so lightly. "Look. This is game Katsuki and I played growing up. It usually involved more wrestling, but the premise was simple. The first one to put his opponent in a situation that could not hope to escape from and be threatened with death," Izuku explained pulling the knife away. He tossed it in the air caught it by the blade and then threw it into the carpet.

"That sounds awful," Momo replied watching him take his seat.

"Maybe, to you. But we were kids and didn't have much. It was also great training. Maybe another time we could go a round," Izuku offered picking up a notebook.

"I think I'll pass," Momo retorted getting her composure back.

"Your loss. I've got a bunch of quirks that would be great for you to practice against. I can easily use one at time if you're worried about the combos," Izuku stated examining his arm for flaws or scars. He gave it a few squeezes to determine it was perfectly fine.

It looked like Momo had really considered the offer after he illuminated the possibilities. "How about getting you used to my second part?" she offered instead.

"Alright, shot. Explain how it works," Izuku instructed or asked it was unclear.

She nodded. Her being home seemed to make her a bit more submissive unlike her persona at school. Izuku didn't plan on taking advantage of that, but it was interesting enough to note. "I order to create something I need to understand the chemical make up, the elements that compose it, and have a good mental picture of what it's supposed to look like," Momo explained before continuing, "The last two are the easy part. The chemical make up part is a bit more tricky." The raven-haired girl pulled out a notebook and wrote down the chemical composition of paper. Izuku recognized the formula. Mei used chemical formulas a lot in her schematic or when listing specific components or ways something had to be created. Izuku knew there was at least 6 different ways to note chemical composition and each of them had a purpose.

He immediately knew that's not how her power worked. That was too much to know to ever be useful. This was also at the molecular level and maintaining that level of concentration for everyday objects would be impossible. There was more happening at an unconscious level than Momo realized.

The green-haired teen knew the composition of graphene or pencil lead. He could visualize it and he even knew the elements it was comprised off: mostly carbon with trace amounts of other elements. But nothing happened when he tried to summon the active part of her quirk.

"Huh, this will take longer than I thought," Izuku lamented flipping to a new page on his personal notebook. Several chemical formulas were jotted down and all of them in different styles. He handed it to Momo.

Her look was of confusion, "I recognize one or two of these." Just as he thought.

"Alright can you make for me... Cube of Sugar, Bar Soap, Table Salt, Square of Plastic, Leaf of Maple, and Bar of Steel?"

"Easily," Momo replied. She held out her arm. Izuku grabbed the cube and table salt as it popped out. He left the Bar Soap, square of plastic, and bar of steel hit the floor. Using telekinesis the leaf was suspended in midair.

"Thought so. Hmm, that's a problem," Izuku grimaced and then sighed. Back to square one. Chemical make up wasn't important. Vaguely aware of the composition was more important.

"Oh, oh, that's major. I might not even understand my quirk fully," Momo frowned.

"That's to be expected. We're only 15 after all. I mean Uraraka's quirk wasn't Zero Gravity," Izuku commented trying to visualize a pencil to no avail.

"What is it?" Momo asked mostly out of curiosity.

"Force Nullification, pretty incredible too," Izuku answered smirking, "I'll have to work on the creation quirk. I think the last two parts are spot on. But the first isn't completely accurate. From my guess you have a vague understanding of what the chemical make up is and your quirk fills in the blanks."

Momo looked out her window. It was getting late. "Izuku-san, its getting late. You should head home. I'll have a limo take you home," she offered.

"Ah, sure, that's nice of you," Izuku got up and put his things together but turned to her, "Can you make a sheath for that knife?"

"I could, why?" Momo wondered watching the knife get pulled psychically out. The green-haired boy caught the knife by the handle.

"Keepsake," Izuku replied earning a smile from her. As asked she made a sheath for the combat knife.

\- Tuesday – Yaoyorozu Household -

The mansion had a gym. A fully functional well stocked gym. It even had two personal trainers on staff. There was a large part of the gym that was dedicated to sparring. Both personal trainers were retired veteran pros. Today it was Momo's first time playing 'To the Death'. It was a brutal game with a simple purpose.

The two personal trainers were instructed to watch and only intervene if it would stop a severe injury. In Izuku's case severe meant fatal. "Alright, come at me with Uraraka's quirk," Momo instructed.

The green-haired boy's stance changed from closed first to open hand.

"I'll say this once. I apologize in advance if I hit or land on anything soft. I'll try to be civil but if that is the best opening I will take it," Izuku stated bowing to Momo.

Momo bowed in turn, "I'd expect no less from a real battle." They stood apart by about 4 meters (13ft). One of the trainers sounded a whistle. Izuku lunged at her. He was much faster than she expected he would be. Still she had enough time to make a quarterstaff and get into stance.

Momo swung when he got close enough. Izuku caught the staff with one hand and she felt the effects of Uraraka's quirk on her staff. It wasn't weightless, but about half its weight had been taken. His mastery over his quirks continued to improve day after day mostly due to curiosity.

There was a bit of a tug of war for the staff, but ultimately Izuku was much stronger than her. He took it and whipped it into the air. It tinged off the roof of the gym.

Momo next choice of weaponry was tonfas. This would be dramatically harder for Izuku to defend against properly. She struck out first getting blocked immediately. Then she uppercut with the other arm. This did connect knocking Izuku back about half a meter. One of the trainers chuckled thinking the boy was over this head against Momo.

He recovered much faster than expected. Stepping in he brought up his right elbow and came in hard. She blocked. He was already mid left hook causing her to block again. Then pivoting with his right foot, he brought up his left knee and connected. Before she could even move from the impact he had brought his right hand below her left guard and grabbed her arm. The weightless set in. Then he went for her neck. A stern strong hold on it, but not tight or constricting. "Dead," Izuku stated letting go and releasing the quirk.

"Holy... You're just as fast as Bakugo," she complained jumping when the quarterstaff hit the ground.

"Forgot about it huh? I'm pretty close to his speed. He's got better instinct though," Izuku commented picking up the staff. He made it weightless again and hurled it like a javelin. The now javelin struck true and punched a hole in a sandbag. "She'll have to learn that eventually. Dense heavy objects retain mass so if used as a projectile it can pack one hell of a punch," Izuku explained.

"So you can expand on people's quirk in a different way than the primary user," Momo commented tossing her tonfas to the side.

"To a degree, but if I can do it then so can the original user," Izuku stated getting ready for round two.

"That's a relief. Let's try Bakugo next," Momo grimaced thinking about the last match.

The pads faded a bit to indicate they were off. "Are you sure you want to try his quirk? I've got another one I've been inching to try out. I'll tell you whose quirk this is after the fact," Izuku offered.

"Alright, can't be any worse than Bakugo's quirk," Momo shrugged ready for anything.

This would be a new sensation for Izuku. Instead of channeling Power Stockpile through another quirk he wanted to channel it straight into his muscles and bones. Green lightning rippled across his body. It was looking for a place to go. He clenched his fist and visualized his muscles absorbing the power. Unlike other quirk combos this had to be continuous feeding of power. Uraraka's quirk would probably be the same way but he didn't want to imagine the nausea from doing that. Once his muscles had finally accepted the infusion of power, a few effects happened. Green lightning was sparking from his body and traced over his skin. His physical form had expanded about 10%. If he had to guess this new form would allow an up to 35% increase in base physical abilities. While not ground breaking it was a lot of return for a situation where all his quirks were useless or a bad idea to use.

Then a time limit was realized. Izuku had at tops 10 minutes in this form. If he adjusted the output or changed around the muscle groups affected he probably could get a lot more out of it, but for an unrefined form this was great.

He gestured to one of the pros he was ready. Momo gulped. As soon as the whistle blew she made her staff. It was just in time to block a punch. The fist dented her staff and bent it slightly. Her hands stung from absorbing the force of the hit.

The barrage of strikes were barely being stopped in time. His movements were almost a blur to her. Then a gut punch landed and a leg sweep immediately after that. Izuku had actually caught her before she had hit the mat headfirst. Again his hand around her throat. It was bad enough that he outclassed her in single quirk combat. But even a basic enhancement was enough to overpower her.

He set her down nicely and powered down. The green lightning felt weird to Momo. They were electrifying but in a way that energized the body.

"You did well considering that was a weak version of All Might's quirk," Izuku whispered.

That made her give him a wide-eyed look. "What? No way! When? How?" she was just questions.

"I'll tell you another time. But it'll take more than a please and puppy dog eyes to coax it from me," Izuku grinned getting her to push him over for being silly.

"How about Bakugo's quirk another day. I don't think I can win against it, but I'll give it a shot," Momo stated standing up. The personal trainers were smiling. This had been the first time that Momo had have fun training. She knew it too but didn't want to admit it. The thrill of a 'death match' gets the blood moving. It also made her woefully aware of her abilities and potential. Izuku was no push over but if she could beat him then she'd more than be ready to be a pro.

After the sparring was dinner and creation practice. He still couldn't do anything, but he was getting familiar with her power. His thought process almost made something and that was a huge improvement. Since she had been taking up so much of his time, she decided it was fair to help with his homework too.

A call from home prompted Izuku to say his farewells. As an off comment Momo mentioned they should have a sleep over some time. Midoriya reply was to question whether her mother would allow it. They were after all boy and girl. A fact that Momo blushed at but did not reply.


	12. Life is a Cooperative Event

\- Thursday – After School -

"All Might what am I doing here?" Izuku asked standing in an open gym with Uraraka and All Might. He was in his muscle form.

"From now on. Every Tuesday and Thursday, you will be here training with Uraraka and me," All Might declared his form puffing into smoke.

Izuku panicked but when Uraraka didn't react he knew immediately. She knew too. It didn't seem to surprise her that he knew too.

"Exactly, what do you hope I can train her to do?" Izuku asked echoing his concern from earlier.

"I was the one that asked for you to be a part of this. You have my quirk and part of One For All. I think if anyone can me train for it. Its you," Uraraka explained. This was news to Izuku. All Might had chosen his successor. At least he choose someone he recommended. He still wanted to know before the decision was made, but this will have to do.

"Wow, so she's going to be the successor? I was about 50% sure she would decline," Izuku smirked.

All Might was about to speak but Uraraka spoke up first, "I thought about it. But All Might believes in me so should I. If I can handle it at all then the good I can do will be limitless."

"Okay, I'm in. What's first on the menu?" Izuku turned to All Might.

"Combat training. You have a strong quirk I need you to be ready to use the physical part of it," All Might declared.

"Just how much experience do you have, Uraraka-san?" Izuku asked stretching.

"Basically, none," she chuckled rubbing her neck nervously.

"I can work with that. At least you're admitting your cup is empty," Izuku shrugged. She was a quick learner. They went from throwing basic punches and kicks to submission moves and techniques. There was a lot of ground to cover and it would be awhile before she could actually spar with him. Overall all it was a night well spent.

They were exiting UA. All Might had to leave early and just left her to Izuku's mercy. Thankfully, for her he was pretty normal.

"Uraraka inheritor of One For All. Most powerful hero in the world, well second most powerful," Izuku commentated like Present Mic on the radio. "First question for the interview: How exactly did you get this powerful?"

She was playing along, "Hmm. I just put in a lot of hard work and applied my quirk the best I can."

Izuku continued much like a radio host, "Well said. Next question is from our very own producer: What does the #2 hero do in her spare time?"

"Well, lift weights keep in shape, eat right, and keep up with the news," she replied.

"Oh come now, #2, what's it really like when you're not a hero?" Izuku pushed.

"Astrology. I like the stars and I some times spend time figuring out which ones are up there. I guess I just like to stargaze. I don't mind a trip to the pool or the ocean," Uraraka blushed answering such a personal question.

"Well ladies and gentleman, we have among us a beauty with her head literally in the clouds. Tell us the most insane thing you've ever done?" Izuku continued the act smiling.

She caught the compliment. "Get to know the #1 hero. He's just this insane guy that does what he wants and no villain can stand up to him. He's reckless, fun, kind, and has a heart of gold. But such a plain guy!" They laughed at her comment.

Izuku dropped the act and got a bit serious, "Thanks for that. Its good to know some one has my back."

"I'm not the only one, Midoriya-san. Iida, Kirishima, Yaoyorozu, Mina, Asui, even Bakugo like having you around. Iida said that you're what we should aspire to be. Kirishima can't help but gush over how 'manly' you are whatever that means. Yaoyorozu said that she wouldn't know what to do if you didn't have her back and push her when she needs it. Mina's a bit of a pervert so I'll let her tell you herself. Asui hates that she hasn't gotten a chance to thank you for saving her. And Bakugo god forbid anyone insults your quirk. He might actually kill someone over it," Uraraka assured him.

He got a bit teary eyed by her comments. "Thanks," he looked away.

"Is the big bad Midoriya tearing up?" Uraraka teased.

"Yeah, first time I feel like I belong," Midoriya smiled wiping his eyes.

"Well, this is where we split. Good night, Midoriya-san," Uraraka waved goodbye.

"Night, Uraraka-san," Izuku waved back.

\- Friday – Support Workshop – After School -

The green-haired teen knocked on the entrance for the Support workshop. It was wise since they had a good chance that something could explode at any time. The door slid open and Power-Loader was standing there.

"Afternoon, Midoriya-san, how may I help you?" Power-Loader asked.

"Is Mei available?" Midoriya asked.

"Yeah, she was staying late getting in some extra credit," Power-Loader replied then whispered, "As if she needs it."

"May I come in?" Midoriya asked. Power-Loader just stepped out of the way and waved him in. The green-haired teen walked over to Mei.

"Been awhile, hun," Mei said but didn't look at him.

"I'm sorry. I'll been busy training my new quirks and studying. But you might be able to help me more than anyone else," Izuku stated putting an arm around her. She was as tense as could be and just relaxed.

She looked at him and dropped her tools. The hug was tight and long enough that Power-Loader-sensei was getting awkward. She sighed out of relief, "Been so long Izuku."

"Its been a month," Izuku retorted.

"That's like 15% of the total time we've spent together. Its notable, compared the total time. Much less we've only been a couple for a few months," Mei pointed out grinning.

"Okay smart ass. I still love you. But do you think you could help?" Izuku kissed her on the lips. Power-Loader considered writing them up but shrugged at it. "I'll leave the room to the two of you. Don't do anything I won't!" The bucket head left the workshop aiming to get something to eat.

"See that guys a good teacher. He cares," Izuku commented pulling up a stool.

"Too much some times. So what's the problem? Is it?" She gestured with her eyes downwards.

"Woah, not that kind of problem," Izuku replied waving his arms around. She pouted. "Its more of a quirk problem. I got Yaoyorozu's quirk but I don't know how to use it. She's been trying to help me but its been to no avail," Izuku explained.

"You know, you spend a lot of time with other girls. Makes a girl jealous... Explain me to it your way not hers," Mei pulled out a notebook.

"It fizzles out between the visualization phase and the construction phase. I can visualize what I want to make. I understand the chemical composition and I can feel that I have lipids available. But when I go to try it just stops and I can't think of why," Izuku explained.

"I think the solution is simple. Stop thinking you're Yaoyorozu. You're Izuku, god damn Symbol of Peace, but you're a bit of a simpleton. Not stupid or lack of understanding but simple is easier for you. So think simple. You know what things are supposed to look like and you know what elements are supposed to be in those things. Is the chemical composition really necessary? Maybe for you its easier to just think of every as a cost," Mei suggested.

She was right. He was thinking of this like another person. Simple was better. It also work better in combat. His first task make a god damn pencil. He knew the shape, color, weight, and elements. He put it all together in a mental soup. He focused on his hand and thought make a pencil. Nothing more or less. Slowly, a pencil emerged from his hand. The feeling of accomplishment was like cocaine. Immediately, he knew how he had to create items. Visualize the tangible properties, add in the elements, and then just will it to happen. It was off to the races after that.

As fast as his mind could process he was making pencils from his arms. It was like a machine gun firing shells. Mei jumped from her seat and started to gather them. All of them were gathered onto a scale. Then the stream of pencils stopped. "Out of ammo. Well that's what zero feels like. I could go further if I tapped into Power Stockpile but it would deplete instantly," Izuku stated helping Mei gather all the pencils. It took about four minutes for them to get them all together.

"How much do you weight, Izuku?" Mei asked just wide-eyed at the pile of pencils.

"About 80kg," he replied.

"This is 54kg of pencils... What the hell kind of quirk is this?" Mei wondered.

"That's a lot of mass being stored in me. Good thing I'm pretty built otherwise an extra 60% of my weight would be problematic," Izuku chuckled marveling at his success.

"What else can you do with it?" sparkles were in her eyes.

"No, just no. I cannot and will not dispense anything you desire or want. I am not willing to ruin the economy or give myself a bad reputation," Izuku swore crossing his heart.

"But that's the best kind of fun. Oh well. Just promise that once in awhile you'll indulge me," Mei requested.

"Fine. One item per week and it needs to be detailed. But above all else I need to know what its for," Izuku gave in. She jumped with joy.

"I know just the thing. Er things," She grinned.

"Thank you. Its just like to you remind me to be myself," Izuku pulled her into a hug.

"Of course, you're my big idiot after all," Mei whispered into his ear. Izuku chuckled at the odd compliment/insult?

"Come on let's head home. My mom's been dying to see you," Izuku stated kissing her on the forehead.

"Sure. I can tell you guys about my support adventures and mishaps!" Mei smiled up to him.

"Betcha there's more mishaps than adventures," Izuku teased.

"You wish. I've been well behaved," Mei puffed out her chest proud. She earned a blush from Izuku. He had certain thoughts cross his mind, but shot them down immediately. Mei got her homework and a few projects together in her backpack before leaving with him. They walked to the train station hand in hand. The high speed train wasn't crowded for once. Mei still felt the need to sit on his lap. She may have been trying to get a rise out of him and more than one kind.

Beyond that it was an uneventful ride. They were again walking hand in hand to his home. "You know, I'm sorry for making a few girl friends first over guy friends," Izuku apologized out of the blue.

Mei had a look of annoyance before she sighed and finally stopped walking. "It doesn't bother me that much. I just like to tease you over it. I don't know much about Uraraka or Yaoyorozu, but they seem to be nice and respect the fact you have a girlfriend. At least as much as I've heard and you've said. Even Yaoyorozu did one up me, but I'll let that slide," Mei nodded smiling at him.

Izuku nervously chuckled, "What did Momo one up you with?" He cursed himself since he had been trying really hard to not use her first name unless he was speaking to her.

This got a raised eyebrow from Mei and an evil grin, "First name basis, huh? That's oftly suspicious of you. Anyway she beat me to bringing you home to meet the folks."

"Heh, I won't say that was a pleasant experience meeting her mother. It was unique but not good," Izuku admitted.

"Then come visit my home this weekend and I'll wash out that bad experience!" Mei jumped with joy at the thought.

"I hope that's not literal. Tsk, tsk, otherwise," Izuku chastised. Her only reply was a toothy grin.

"No promises," Mei retorted.

The rest of the way to Izuku home was questions about Yaoyorozu's mansion and her wealth. Surprisingly, Izuku had paid way more attention than he should have to her private quarters. The Midoriya household was underwhelming compared to the grand estate, but it was home.

"Mom, we're home," Izuku called out earning a surprised yelp from his mother. This was the first day in nearly two weeks that he got home before his curfew.

"We're? Oh Mei-chan!" Inko got up from the couch and hugged Mei when she ran over. "It's been awhile. How have you been?"

"I've been great. The support course has been loads of fun and people really like my inventions!" Mei was just so excited to talk with someone that genuinely cared about what she had to say. Izuku decided to let them have there fun. He would do something out of the ordinary and make dinner for them.

It took his mom about 20 minutes before she asked if he was okay.

"I've helped Mitsuki and Katsuki more than a few times to know how to cook. Relax," Izuku suggested and commanded all at once.

Dinner was fine. Not nearly as good as his mother's cooking but it wasn't anything that could kill. He made a double for himself knowing he was running on empty. That was when Mei asked for something that Inko had not expected any time soon.

"Would it be alright if I stayed the night? It's just so far and I don't want to be super tired tomorrow," Mei practically begged. Izuku knew better she had an ulterior motive. A motive he could handle on his own.

Inko looked really torn about it. Mei gave her puppy dog eyes and broke Inko's determination. "Fine. Just tonight. And I don't want any funny business. Its not something a mother wants to hear," Inko warned staring down Mei. His mother's fierce protection of him was quite intimidating. Mei gulped. Izuku figured that alone would be enough of a deterrent.

Oh boy was he so right and wrong at the same time. Mei said the couch will do, but Inko knew better. Before bed she gave the pink-haired teen one more deathly glare before heading into her room.

As much as he hated to admit it sleeping in the same bed as her was nice. She was warm and the skin-to-skin contact had a cathartic effect.

Mei at first obviously had other intentions, but found the bare minimum to be enough. She was satisfied knowing she was the only one that got this privilege. They fell asleep one arm around her stomach and the other was her pillow.

The morning came in an instant. Izuku woke up early. Training was a continuous ongoing struggle, but it was the weekend so one day of sleeping in wouldn't be bad. It also not like he could move Mei anyway. She was just so damn cute sleeping.

Being the romantic he was, he brushed her hair from her face. At some point in the night she had turned to face him. That was when an all to familiar feeling was pressing against his chest. He peaked under the covers before quickly putting them back. His suspicions had been confirmed. She was in fact bra-less.

Panic set in but he punched the simpleton part of him. She probably had a good reason and he was too chivalrous to allow something like that to break him.

She let out a cute yawn and opened her eyes. "Good morning, handsome," Mei smiled at him.

"How was it?" Izuku asked rubbing her back.

"Best sleep I've ever had," she replied burying her head into his chest and hugging him. It was just cute and his heart beat a bit faster. His biology on the other hand aimed to betray him.

"So umm... Why are you half naked?" Izuku whispered stroking her hair.

"I wasn't trying to seduce you or anything. Its just better for the girls if I don't wear a bra at night. It tends to hurt a lot if I do," Mei bite her lip and gave him the most sultry look, "Feels like to me your body is being honest." She put her hand over his bulge and caressed it slowly.

"H-hey, hey, now none of that," Izuku stuttered feeling it throb from the attention.

She complied and whispered in his ear, "I am going to enjoy the day that I can use that bad boy. And it is going to be glorious." She was up after that. Being the spontaneous one she threw off the sheets and got up. Izuku got a feast of the eyes. But stayed true and looked away.

"Izuku, you have my permission to look. Just no touching," Mei teased.

"I think that's just unfair," Izuku pointed out.

"No more unfair than that rager you have," Mei had her bra back on when he opened his eyes again.

Izuku took deep breaths hoping to quell it, "Its not like I can control it. It just reacts."

She came over to him and ruffed his hair, "That's good, Izuku. Means you like more than my face." His blush was a fierce red after that. After finally quelling the beast he got up and got dressed.

The rest of that weekend was pretty much training and getting to know Mei's parents.

\- Wednesday – Search and Rescue Training -

They were all back at USJ. It had been two weeks since the incident. The center had been completely repaired and got back to optimal functionality. UA wasted no time getting the students back there. It would be best for psychological health to confront the place of pain rather than avoid it.

All Might was leading the class in his Silver Age outfit. "Today will be: Search and Rescue Training!" The large man shouted. Everyone except Izuku were in there hero outfits. His was still being repaired/upgraded. Mei could have let him have it but that would be like pissing off a honey badger. A horny, evil honey badger that knows where he lived.

"We're going to break you into teams of five. The remaining 15 will be victims of various triage levels. Most of the 15 will be able to speak except for two of you. Two will be the unconscious victims and will require immediate medical aid," All Might explained.

Aizawa had not taken any leave for medical reasons. He was perfectly capable of moving just he was bandaged from head to toe. The bandaging by the two week mark was just the full head and arms. He kind of looked like a mummy where they just gave up when they got to the torso. If his end wasn't bandaged he'd actually look like a pretty cool anime protagonist.

"No supplies will be provided. You must rely on your teammates and on your quirks to rescue everyone. Each team will have 5 minutes to prep and another 20 minutes to rescue all 15 victims. Just to make this exercise more realistic we'll be remotely controlling the magnitude of severity for each area," Aizawa explained.

"Points will be given out based on speed and the number of rescuees. The order of triage will also be graded," All Might added now with clipboard in hand. Where he had gotten it was anyone's guess.

"Teams will be: Asui, Mina, Sero, Koda, Midoriya; Bakugo, Jirou, Sato, Kaminari, Shoji; Iida, Aoyama, Uraraka, Ojiro, Hagakure; Yaoyorozu, Todoroki, Tokoyami, Mineta, Kirishima. Each team will have a different area for the exercise. Team Asui, you have Conflagration. Team Bakugo, you have Downpour. Team Iida, you have Ruins. Team Yaoyorozu, you have Landslide," All Might spouted off. The students got into their groups.

"Conflagration Team will be first. The intensity and density of the smoke will be the changing variable. The fires will rage constantly and be generally uncontrollable. Move out!" Aizawa shouted getting Team Asui in gear.

\- Conflagration Zone -

Mina of all people took point, "Midoriya, scout out and let us know if you find people. You can also go for the higher up folks that might be too hard for Sero to get. Asui and Koda I want you to prioritize on the ground or ground floor victims. Then create a clear area and determine what kind of treatment they need. I'll head out for the further victims and I can move around on the ground pretty quickly. Sero I want you to coordinate with Midoriya for victims above ground level."

"Impressive, Mina-san. You heard her let's get to this," Izuku smirked creating an earbud. He then gave another to Sero, "Tap it to communicate. It's voice activated. Tap it to turn it off. The line is open so if you leave it on I can hear you."

Sero took off his visor and added in the earbud. "Sweet, the man of many quirks will make this easy," Sero commented.

"Let's not jump to conclusions. I just hope Katsuki is one of the unconscious victims. Otherwise, oh man," Izuku retorted earning a nod from his teammates.

"Midoriya, got a moment?" Asui asked beckoning him over to her.

"Yeah, we have a minute or two," Izuku replied. The two of them broke away from the group.

She took a deep breath and bowed, "Thank you for saving my life!" Izuku was taking aback by this.

He nervously rubbed his neck, "Your welcome? I was just doing what anyone else would."

She straightened up, "I think you needed to hear it as much I wanted to thank you." Izuku was speechless. She had hit the nailed on the head. It did feel good to hear a heartfelt 'Thank you'. He nodded to her and got back to the group before the bell rang.

When the bell went off they broke into action. Izuku soared above the group making quick passes around the buildings. He used his telekinesis to direct the smoke away from him. "Got one, Sero, I'll stay next it until you get here," He said tapping his earpiece and looking around. His range was around 26 meters. It just felt another around ground level. Izuku had tossed an earpiece to Mina and Asui before they took off. "Mina, got one on the second floor near me," Izuku tapped the earpiece. He only wanted to turn it off after relaying instructions. If he had kept it on the wind sound would have been unbearable.

The purple girl staked over on her acid. "Where?!" she yelled from the ground level. Izuku directed himself down a story. "About 10 meters in on this floor," Izuku told her. She nodded and dashed into the building. Izuku could tell that she was burning through walls instead of going room to room. Sero swung by like spider-man and latched into a street lamp.

Izuku tapped the earpiece, "3rd floor, 12 meters in." Then off it went.

Asui came over the earpiece, "_Koda found 6 of them with the help of some birds and rats that saw them hide. We're making the triage center now._"

Mina was next, "_Found our first unconscious. Midoriya, give me a hand._"

Izuku, "Roger that." He swooped down and released Force Nullification. He ran into the building and used his telekinesis to starve the fire of oxygen. This quickly made the ground floor much more bearable. Mina was carrying Jirou on her back. Jirou was doing a great job acting unconscious. Midoriya got over them and applied Force Nullification to Jirou. This made it much easier for Mina. While she was taking her out of the building Izuku made a simple pass using his telekinesis.

They were out of the building. "She's got minor head trauma and the smoke limited her oxygen supply," Izuku pointed out.

"Midoriya, take her to the triage center. You're the fastest of us," Mina requested. He released his Nullification. Mina dropped her into his arms. He made her weightless and himself. He kept one arm around her legs for stability and then used his telekinesis for additional stability. With his free hand he used his explosions to maneuver.

In moments he was at the triage center. Koda took her from him. He released his Nullification. His stomach was experiencing a bit of nausea. Izuku took a moment to catch his breath and calm down. Asui looked worried. "My limit is way less than Uraraka's. So carrying myself and another is straining to say the least," Izuku admitted.

Sero, "_Found one on the fourth floor. Requesting assistance._"

"Koda-san, do you have this?" Izuku asked. The shy teen nodded. Izuku made himself weightless and then picked up Asui. "Close your eyes, Tsu." He shot off into the air. Izuku spotted Sero and a few on rooftops. He made a mental note for them. He rocketed down and weaved between the buildings.

"Holy crap, Midoriya, is this what it feel likes to be flying?!" Asui shouted feeling the wind and heat from the buildings.

"Yup, its pretty awesome. Need a visor though. The wind can get to your eye pretty quickly," Izuku replied slowing himself down as he approached Sero.

Mina showed up just in time to. Asui was let down and the Nullification released. "What's going on?"

"We got 8 down. I've spotted the remaining 7. 2 on roofs. That's you Midoriya. 3 more on ground level in the more distant buildings. Mina get them out of the building and safe. Midoriya and I can do the pickup whenever you call for it. Asui and I will take the low and high rescuee respectively," Sero stated placing a hand out to the middle of them. Izuku chuckled and placed his hand over Sero's. Mina and Asui did the same.

Mina spoke up, "Let's rock it, team Asui!" They all then shouted 'Plus Ultra'. The group broke up. Sero explained over comms that he left an 'X' shaped tape on the buildings to mark them.

Izuku was the first to complete his task. He then assisted Mina. The injuries were all fairly varied. Some had 'broken' legs and arms. Others were just lost and confused. A one Shoji was given the task to of the rescuee that couldn't leave behind 'X'. In his case it was a piece of pottery in the fire. That gave team Asui a good laugh.

They had in 13 minutes gathered up all the students and diagnosed all of them. All Might showed up. "Good work everyone. That was impressive teamwork. I might even give you extra points for relying so little on Midoriya," All Might gave them his trademark smile.

"I just didn't want Midoriya to shoulder all the burden. He's crazy capable, but we need to catch up to him," Mina stated lightly punching Midoriya's arm. This made Midoriya smile. His classmates were more than ready to rely on him, but they wanted to pave their path first.

"Let's head to the downpour zone next. The intensity of the rain and lightning will be the dynamic factor," All Might explained.

\- Downpour Zone -

Katsuki knew his teammates were basically useless, but he wasn't doing much better in the absolute downpour that was the Downpour zone. At least it lived up to its name. His explosions worked poorly in the rain and completely stopping working if his hand became too wet. Flying was off the table. Shoji and Jirou proved that they had the ability to sense around find people fairly easily. But even that proved difficult as the rain and lightning could make false feelings.

Kaminari and Sato were carrying most of the people they found. They had decided to setup a point outside the zone so people could dry off. Which left Katsuki with one job: warm up the victims. Outside the zone he could still use his quirk just fine. On a low enough setting he could make his explosions produce a lot of directed heat. He was like an industrial blow dryer.

This level of menial work pissed off Katsuki to no end. He was greater than this. They had found 13 of 15 within 15 minutes. No team Midoriya, but still pretty good considering two members of the team were basically useless. Katsuki had guessed correctly that a special victim was among them. The first team got a sentiment victim that refused to leave unless they retrieved the item.

Their team had gotten the unruly victim that would resist. Most likely to represent some one that had gone delirious and made delirious. Unfortunately, for them it was Izuku of all people. So it was like trying to take down the juggernaut. They had left him to prioritize the other victims.

This wasn't too bad since he was only a danger to his rescuers. "Shoji, what was he shouting about?" Katsuki asked having not been there.

They were trying to find the last victim other than Izuku. "He kept going on about 'she'll drown'," Shoji said from one of his dupli-arms. He wasn't delirious he was trying to help and refused to get rescued until we followed his directions.

Sato and Jirou were at the rendezvous point as well. "He's being literal. Are there any drains or manholes you guys came across? Someone's in there!" Katsuki shouted sprinting into the downpour zone.

The rest of his team struggled to keep up with him. Finding Izuku wasn't hard. He was loud and vocal as hell. He was also a force of nature to fight so that was out of the question.

"Izuku, where are they?!" Katsuki got in close to Izuku. A glance from Izuku gave the blonde everything he needed. He knew the green-haired twerp had instructions to shout one phrase, but his body language could betray him.

His team had caught up to him. "Follow me. I know where to start looking," Katsuki demanded running off. Shoji was the last to leave catching Izuku grinning.

"Jirou, Shoji, I'm going to guess neither of your quirks help find people that are drowning," Katsuki asked standing above a manhole cover. With the help of Shoji they ripped it off and tossed it aside.

"No, the water would be like create too much interference trying to pinpoint a person," Jirou replied watching Bakugo.

"Tch, of course they would do it then. Both of you are great at find and scouting so them put in someone you could find. You'd have to look everywhere if you want to find them. The teachers are sending you a message," Bakugo took a deep breath and then jumped in.

"'Don't get to reliant on your quirks'," Jirou mouthed before running back to Izuku.

Katsuki was a pretty good swimmer but the waterways were like trying to swim in a river or the sea during a storm. There was a push and pull. A current would make surviving this pretty hard on someone. No less they had to spend probably 10 minutes in this condition.

After a minute of swimming Katsuki got a glimpse of someone. It was Yaoyorozu. She was probably chosen due to having above average buoyancy. He knew her quirk allowed her to store fat so that must affect her bouyance.

"Hang on I got you," Katsuki yelled. He swam over to her. She was struggling at this point.

"Finally, my arms are getting tired," Yaoyorozu whined. Katsuki put one arm around her shoulder. The tidal waves proved to be annoying. He pulled her along. She was helping him to a degree. They got back to the manhole. "Shoji, reach down and get us!" Katsuki shouted. The man's dupli-arms spider webbed down to them. Izuku was looking from above. Shoji pulled them up. As soon as they got within range Izuku helped them.

Katsuki was confused. Izuku shouldn't be helping them. They got back to the surface. Katsuki confused face said it all. "I asked him for help and convinced him that some times civilians get asked to assist pros, so he just tagged along," Jirou shrugged as if it was no big deal.

"Shit, Momo, you were down their so long you got hypothermia," Izuku pointed out. He then materialized a thick waterproof jacket destroying his own shirt in the process. With some help with Izuku she slipped in on. Initially, Shoji was going to pick her up but Izuku did it instead. He was carrying her bridal style.

As soon as they got out of the downpour zone All Might and Aizawa rushed over. "How is she?" Aizawa asked seeing her shiver in Izuku's arms.

"I'm taking her to Recovery Girl. Her body is far too cold. She _might_ be available for her round," Izuku declared. Aizawa was going to protest but the glare from Izuku was enough to get him to back down. He carried her straight out of the center.

\- Ruins Zone -

The search and rescue continued as normal. Five had to find 13 now. Ochako was worried about Yaoyorozu. She was shivering pretty badly. She had faith in Izuku he would look after her. The rest of Bakugo's team was taking it hard. They had ignored Izuku's warns in favor of getting the most people taken care of. Aizawa was the coldest about it though, 'Some times heroes can't be everywhere and people get missed. This is why having compatible quirks is even more important.'

Aizawa's comment had stung deeply. Ochako didn't want it to get to them. She had a mission. She had people to save. It might be cold-hearted but someone was taking care of it and she had to have faith in others. Turns out she was great for this kind of thing. Making people weightless and tossing them out windows was extremely cathartic too. For everyone though she had to remind them they would be fine.

Most people had a tendency to panic when getting thrown from places.

Iida was the one that collected the people she had thrown. Ojiro and her made a fantastic team. He could launch her with his tail into buildings. They made a quick pass before moving onto the next. Hagakure was administrating 'treatment' and determining triage needs. The invisi-girl found it much easier to examine people when they were weightless.

Aoyama was mainly the scout. He had the flashiest quirk for it after all. Their teamwork was top notch. They had no problems will any individual. Even the one person that was 'supposed' to resist was no match for Ochako. Luckily, Bakugo was one of the unconscious victims. If he been the resister it would have been a nightmare to contain him.

All in all, they ended with a respectable time of 14 minutes. Unconscious people had been prioritized first, then those with broken bone type injuries, and finally minor to medium injuries.

"Well done. Its good to see that one setback didn't affect the whole class," Aizawa dryly stated.

"On to the last zone. If Yaoyorozu can't return then her team will have to make due. The variable here will be the slipperiness of the slope," All Might declared walking ahead of the group. Team Yaoyorozu was without Yaoyorozu and there was no sign of her.

\- Infirmary -

Chiyo and Izuku were fast to work. The heavy jacket had stopped the hypothermia but it did not stop it. "I can't believe they would allow this. This is just plain reckless. That downpour zone is 8 degrees!" (8°C → 46°F) Chiyo stated a bit of annoyance on her voice.

"Is there anything else I can do," Izuku asked seeing Momo shivering under the covers.

"Depends. Want a crash course on my quirk? You know hers so you could do more with mine than I could in this scenario," Recovery Girl smirked.

"Okay, let's do this. I'll help anyway I can," Izuku replied getting a chair for him and her.

"My quirk activates through my lips. In fact, its just one of the places were my blood is closer to the surface. The quirk gives off a type of energy that revitalizes the victim at the cost of the victim's stamina. Stamina is kind of a loose term for the quirk. For instance hormones, stem cells, stored fat, or potential energy the victim has available to them can be used. I can choose which of those is taken. In the case of hypothermia, the core temperature is too low. Using my quirk I could boost the metabolism of the victim in exchange for say fat or hormones," Chiyo explained before added one last comment, "What she needs most right now is heat. So combine that with my quirk and she could recover within minutes."

"The only way I can provide warmth.. is with.. body heat," Izuku realized immediately he wanted to shoot down this idea. She was naked under those blankets. He had helped Recovery Girl to a degree undress her. He made sure not to see anything of course.

"I'm going to go to the teacher's lounge for any early lunch. What happens when I'm not here is none of my responsibility," Chiyo grinned exiting the infirmary.

"Izuku," Momo called out to him. He was at her side in an instant.

"Momo, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have let anything happen," Izuku apologized.

"Just do it," she weakly requested. He was at a loose for words. Only last weekend had he been in bed with a woman, but that was mostly asleep. This was awake and that was a totally different ballpark. Then out of nowhere he had slapped himself across the face. Man up she's suffering and he had the means to end it. Unfortunately, the means justified the ends.

Izuku took off his shirt and closed his eyes. Using telekinesis he pulled up the blankets and joined her. She practically clung to him. Izuku's super regeneration prevented his core temperature from falling. This meant in times of cold his body's metabolism increased a little or substantially to compensate for the temperature loss. He was like a human heater. Her skin was soft. The green-haired teen under her head and around her back. The other arm was wrapped around the small of her back and pushed her closer.

Closing his eyes he entered his quirk space. Now that he understood how Chiyo's quirk worked it meant that empowering it would have a profound impact. Empowering the quirk allowed it to be usable through any surface that blood passed by. Which was basically all of his skin. "Time to fix this," Izuku called out his body glowing green. Just activating the power he could feel it spread across his whole body. She was right the skin is too thick to transfer it. But he had a way to upgrade the power. Coursing Power Stockpile through it caused his entire body to light up a faint green. Just as instructed he aimed to boost her metabolism at the cost of stored fat. Fat that he knew exactly how it was stored and how to target it. He kissed her forehead activating the full power of the quirk. Her whole body lit up with a faint green glow.

"What is this?! Its like lightning is coursing through my veins," Momo said sighing as the heat flowed through her body.

That was more than the effect Heal normally had. He checked within. Power Stockpile had been depleted by half! A thought crossed his mind, but it was impossible. He had to ask, "Are your muscles bulging and time seems a bit slower right now?"

"Yeah, exactly that!" Momo squeezed him. In fact she was much stronger than normal. Did he just buff her with heal? That would explain the loss of Power Stockpile. That power had to go somewhere. Recovery Girl left out the part where her power was temporarily transferred to do her will onto the 'victim'. This had interesting implications with Power Stockpile. Would it be possible to transfer more than just one quirk with Power Stockpile? He wondered and had to know. At most she would get about 10 minutes of muscle empowerment or limited use of Uraraka's or Bakugo's empowered quirk. That was more than worth it to find out. He empowered himself once more and repeated the treatment.

"What are you doing?... ?!" Momo asked starting to sweat from the momentarily overactive metabolism.

"I'm sorry in advance, but I was curious. Heal was doing more than I thought possible," Izuku grinned at her. He finally opened his eyes. Her eyes had a green glow to them. Green lightning coursed across her skin.

She sat up giving him a full frontal. Momo was far more concerned with the newly acquired abilities. Her hands were sweating and detonating. It was unconscious until she took command of it. The explosions were green in color. A new kind of mental sense formed. It was like an extra touching sense but she could grab things and move lighter objects. The feeling of her muscles was great, but she limited the affect to her arms and legs. Testing out explosion she held up her right palm and let loose an low level blast. The recoil was much more than she thought, but not more than she could handle. It wouldn't be possible to use even 50% blasts without hurting herself. Even without using the power much it was decaying. After all she had no way to replenish it.

"Do I have Explosion and Telekinesis?" Momo asked not really too concerned that she was giving him a full frontal.

Izuku had just comes to terms with her bosom. Next step was calm down. Thankfully, she wasn't clinging on to him anymore otherwise she'd feel it. After taking a mental picture of her full frontal, he shook himself out of his stupor and made eye contact, "Yes. Explosion and Telekinesis have a small pull on the battery. The whole body empowerment drains it much faster. You have about 15 to 20 minutes before the power leaves you."

"What?! Then I need to get out there. I can be the difference!" Momo stated throwing the covers off. Izuku got more than he bargained for. She blushed realizing he was just awestruck looking at her. Perfect would have been a great term to describe her. He saw something others would literally kill him for. He turned away and closed his eyes.

"I'm-," Izuku started to say before she but a finger to his lips.

"Let's just agree that didn't happen. Its not like you're hiding much from me right now too," Momo retorted. He opened his eyes and her leotard was complete and intact on her. She pointed down to his rager. If blushing could kill he'd have died. There was a brush in her hand and she was straightening her hair.

Explaining the tax of his quirks was all that was left, "Overusing explosion can break your arms. Overusing telekinesis will cause your nose to rupture and past that a concussion-like damage would be next. If you didn't pass out from that. That would be the next step."

"Thank you. We'll talk about this later," She got close and whispered, "Make sure you quell that before you poke someone's eye out." She grinned at that statement and walked off.

Momo could not believe the power coursing through veins. She broke out into a sprint aiming to run back to the USJ center. For a high school girl, she was moving at an inhuman speed. If anyone didn't know they'd thought she had some kind of speed related quirk.

She heard or rather felt the first bell off her team. Faster was necessary. Bakugo could use explosion to get airborne. These explosion were way more powerful and should be much easier to propel herself with. Blasting into the air was exhilarating. It wasn't like normal flying, it was like being a jet. She skidded to a stop outside of the USJ.

\- Landslide Zone -

Todoroki had taken point. His ice was stopping the area from being any worse than it already was. Kirishima and Tokoyami was leading the rescue operation. It would take awhile and many of the buildings had gotten covered since they started. Todoroki could only freeze the area so long until he'd be frozen over.

Six minutes had passed and they had only rescued five people. They were nearly the surface and rather vocal. Then out of the blue Yaoyorozu landed next to Aizawa and All Might. She had come to a rolling stop, literally. Getting up she shook her head.

"Well, that's unexpected. How are you using those powers?" Aizawa asked raising an eyebrow.

"No time to explain. I've got 12 minutes until I'm out. Mineta status report!" Momo shouted at the small teen. He had been in charge of 'treatment'.

He stood at attention. Her form was emitting green lightning and she looked scary as hell. "We have five so far. The rest are buried. We were given a 4 minute shorter time limit than the other teams," Mineta explained.

The new team captain nodded and created several steel flags with extendable poles. They had pointed ends. Marker flags. She strapped them to her back and launched off.

Todoroki glared at her. She was using his powers after all. Kirishima and Tokoyami had the same trains of thought. Not quite as well as he could, but for having them for a few minutes it was pretty good. Later it would occur to her that some innate knowledge must have passed through the quirk.

Momo skated across the ice of the landslide. The range on his telekinesis was about 26 meters and it was in every direction. She planted a flag on each spot she felt another student. Nine flags planted. Nine students found. Now for the hard part: digging them out. The deeper students were her problem. There was three of them.

"Kirishima and Tokoyami! Get the marker further up the hill! Those are the thinner ones. I'll get the three near Todoroki!" she blasted off to the base of the hill. The other two nodded and picked the nearest flag.

She landed next to Todoroki. 8 Minutes of power left. "Todoroki-san, can you reinforce the upper flags? I'm going blow up the ones near us," Momo explained skating to a spot just above the three.

"That's an insane idea. But I can't hold this much longer. You've got two minutes before I have to defrost," Todoroki replied sending more ice down the field.

"I know, but that's why it'll work," Momo retorted taking a deep breath. She knelt down and held out her palms at a 45 degree angle from herself. 50% Explosion! X2. All of her muscle groups from fingers to shoulder ached from the recoil. Much of the mud and debris was blown into the air and the sides filled in the gap. This brought her close enough to hear her fellow students trapped below. The left and right were close enough to get to. Momo slide down and onto the roof of a previously submerged building. "Get to a side! I'm going to open this!" she shouted feeling the person within comply. 10% explosion was more than enough to blow a hole through the roof. A gloved hand with an invisible arm reached out from the hole.

Momo pulled her out. "What's the injury?"

"Nothing major, twisted ankle," Hagakure replied. She brought the invisible girl into a tight hug.

"Hold on this will be rough," Momo warned. She adjusted her palm positioning to compensate for the change in gravity. They rocketed into the air just clearing the landslide. Todoroki's ice was failing.

"Hagakure-san you can walk on your own. The triage area is over there. I'll be back momentarily and help you the rest of the way there," Momo promised sliding down the other side.

Again the same process. Punch a hole in the ceiling. Unfortunately, this was one of the two unconscious victims. She climbed down and hoisted Aoyama over her shoulder. He was heavier than she was used to lifting and had to use the muscle enhancement. 7 minute is now 3 minutes. She pulled herself out of the building. Using some psychic holding she rocketed into the air. Instead of just out of the area, she flew over to their triage area. She tried to land as nicely as possible, but time was short. Gently, she moved him to the ground.

In the corner of her eye, she posted Izuku standing next to All Might. She'd have to thank him later and maybe get another taste of this power. It would be a potent ace to have to temporarily transfer his powers.

Momo flipped backward using her explosions to stick the landing in the nearer pit she had made. One shot left. 50% explosion with her right arm. Tendons snapped, her upper arm bone snapped, and her muscles were past their limit. Worth it. The mud and debris in front her had been displaced into the open pit across from her.

Punching a hole in the roof she jumped in. "Are you alright, Sato-san?"

"Broken leg," He replied fake limping to her. Sato was well above her weight limit for carrying and she had one useless arm.

"Let's do this the old fashion way," Momo she kneeling down, "I'll help you get out. After you get a hold I'll jump out and pull you out." It was a good plan. He stepped on her given foothold with his good leg. She strained pushing him up. Momo applied at of her psychic power getting him to the roof. She huffed and was out of breath. Jumping with explosions out of the building she was above the roof. He was almost strong enough to pull himself out.

Her head was pounding. Is this how Izuku felt? Pain from the arms. Pain from the brain. Neither were any good. Carrying him off wasn't possible as he was too heavy. Option number 2 was possible. She held out her other palm and leveled it at the mound of frozen mud. This was going to hurt. 70% Explosion!

Todoroki jumped seeing a huge explosion tear through the mud only a few meters from him. Momo had broken her other arm. With her less broken arm she supported Sato out and up the frozen mud. "I believe he's the last one," she shouted.

Aizawa tapped his phone. 13 minutes almost on bar with Team Asui. He deducted points for the condition of the rescuers.

Izuku shook his head next to Aizawa, "I'll give them first aid." The green-haired teen walked over to Todoroki and checked out his side. "Minor frostbite. Balance out and get a hot pack on it," he stated going over to Momo the only other person hurt.

"Sato-san, exercise is over. Lend her over to me," Izuku requested. The larger man nodded and let him take his spot holding her up.

"How do you do it?" Momo asked her vision blurry.

"Years of building quirk resistance. You got all the power and no resistances. It was a fun idea, but a bad one ultimately," Izuku answered. She winced as he used his telekinesis to set her bones. The Heal quirk lit up. He kissed her on the neck. Cell growth for stored fat.

"Thank you. Still hurts like hell," Momo rested her head on his shoulder.

"I know. Muscles are better to let heal over time. Your tendons and bones should be fine now," Izuku explained picking her up. She was tired so much so she passed out. Her head was bobbing from the his walking. Using a bit of telekinesis, he pushed her head up and onto his shoulder.

"All Might-sensei, Aizawa-sensei, you won't mind me taking her back to the infirmary would you?" Izuku asked or told the two present teachers.

All Might was speechless. Aizawa merely nodded and directed his attention to the rest of the class, "Well done, everyone, get changed out of your costumes. Rest of the day is study."


	13. UA Sports Festival

Today was the day. The long awaited for Sport Festival. It was a huge national event on the level of the Olympics. All eyes would be on them. Instead of having class it was morning breakfast and then out to the stadium. All of first years were out on the field. Their turn was first. This was the first opportunity all of them had to make a splash.

Izuku intended to make a splash so big it was a tidal wave. He was the class representative too. The crowd was cheering for them as they entered the arena. All the students had to wear their gym clothes and nothing more unless it was allowed. This meant Izuku had to keep his distance from his fellow classmates. He didn't want to risk gaining a new quirk or two.

Midnight the +18 hero was on the stage introducing the event. Midoriya hadn't planned on making much of a speech. So what happened next was unlike anything he could imagine.

Midnight, "Before we kick off the competitions, the class representative, Izuku Midoriya, will utter the sportsmanship oath!"

Midoriya took a deep breath and calmed his nerves. He walked up onto stage. The cheer had died down and the crowd was whispering. His reputation had to die here and now. He placed both hands on either side of the podium and closed his eyes.

Midnight was getting nervous. She was wondering if he had choked from the pressure, but he spoke.

"Above all else today: We the students of UA will aim for the heavens and show you all what we have to offer the world... But today I'll show the world that I aim to be the Symbol the Peace just like All Might!" Izuku raised up his fist into the sky, "For am I here! Let's go beyond! Plus Ultra!" The crowd couldn't help but chant back UA's motto. The green-haired boy left the stage.

"That was quite the speech and promise! Now let's get onto the first round!" A holographic screen appeared behind her. Much like a slot machine, events were moving past the screen at a blurred rate. Then finally one was chosen: Marathon Race.

"Looks like the Marathon Race will be the first event. I'll explain for those of you at home that are just tuning into their first Sport's Festival. Marathon Race, is a 4km race around the stadium where students will have to pass various challenges. The first to make it back into the stadium and cross the finish line will be crowned the winner!" Midnight explained as the one wall of the stadium receding into the ground and the grounds around the stadium adjusted to meet the new parameters.

"Quirks are a go and as long as you stay within bounds anything goes!" Midnight shouted before a countdown started on the screen.

"3!". "2!". "1!". "Run!" was announced as a relatively quiet buzzer went off.

Izuku was at the back of the crowd. Unlike the rest of the class he couldn't be at the front where they were packed like Sardines. The floodgates opened and the students came out like a tide. Todoroki froze pretty much everyone that was behind and near him. Izuku was already hovering when this happened.

The green-haired teen gave his competition some time to get out and ahead of him. This more than caught the attention of the crowd. Heroes and fans alike were shouting at him. Izuku grinned just the reaction he was looking for.

Midnight had only heard of his power. But witnessing it first hand was something else. The runners had just encountered the giant robots. Izuku at that point had taken off. His departure had rattled the stands briefly. He was like a missile.

Izuku didn't like to showboat, but it would be necessary if he wanted all eyes on him. A visor for the wind as he flew was necessary so he made one. Two giant robots made a pass at him only get blasted to bits by two green explosions. That had halted him momentarily before he rocketed forth. The camera's locked onto him and calculated his speed: 451km/hr. This wasn't even top speed, but Izuku didn't have a suit to allow him that kind of speed. The one thing he found out about flying as that it made him cold really fast. If not for super regeneration stabilizing his core, he'd have to be like Katsuki and fly in small bursts.

The next obstacle the students face was the Fall. It was pit and tight-ropes. Present Mic made a comment that anyone that fell would be disqualified. Izuku shrugged he didn't have to touch the ground after all. He was soaring about 10 meters above the stages (32ft 9.6in). It took him a split second to pass the stage. Mei was fairly far ahead of the pack. She didn't tell him that she would compete. He figured it was for advertising.

The last obstacle was a minefield. Again a pointless obstacle to the flying Midoriya. He released his quirk coming to a rolling stop just outside of the finish line. He then let loose one more explosion vaulting over the finished line. The crowd exploded from his utter victory.

"That's was a record time! 1 minute and 12 seconds!" Present Mic announced over the loud speaker.

All Midoriya did was raise his fist to the sky.

It was another 4-5 minutes until another person crossed the finish line. Bakugo, Todoroki, girl with vines for hair, guy with visible teeth, Iida, Tokoyami, and so on.

"Fucking show off," Katsuki mouthed flipping Izuku off. A buzzer sounded at around 10 minutes. About 90 students had crossed the finish line.

"Top 40 will more on to the next round! Everyone else can head back to the stands. Let's get to the next event!" The holographic scene was back. Again the roulette spun. The crowd waited with bated breath.

"Cavalry Battle!" Midnight shouted earning a cheer from the crowd, "I'll explain for those seeing it for the first time: groups of 2-4 students will team up together. Points were earned as such from last round, 40 gets 5; 39 gets 10 and so forth. Except for number one, they will be given 10,000,000 points!"

Izuku chuckled that was unexpected, but an interesting move. The rest of the participates whispered and backed away from him. More or less the expected outcome by the administrators.

"You've have 15 minutes to make teams and another 15 minutes on the field. One person must be designated as the rider and that person cannot be allowed to touch the ground. But no under handed tactics! The team's score will be combined and displayed on the rider headband. These headbands must stay above the shoulders. Any team that loses their headband with not be out for the count! Scores will be tallied at the end!" Midnight shouted before declaring, "Time begins now!"

Izuku sighed, _Getting a team will be hard hu__h? _A familiar voice called out to him, "Izuku, hun, let's team up!"

Mei hugged him and jumped around excited. "You're more chirper than normal."

"Of course, I get to be on your team which means, I'll get a chance to show off my babies in the last round," Mei retorted stars in her eyes. Of course.

"Let's go find a few more. Shall we?" Izuku took Mei's hand. Then out of the blue Uraraka approached them.

"Midoriya, I want to be on your team," she said bluntly.

This got an eyebrow rise from Izuku, "May I ask why?"

"I think you have the best chance to be number 1. That's a guaranteed way to go to the next round," she replied. That fire in her was burning fairly strong.

_She's not wrong..._ he thought before saying, "Alright, welcome abroad. I think I know who could be the last member."

He made a beeline to the only martial artist he knew. "Ojiro-san!" Izuku shouted knocking him out of some kind of trance. A purple-haired boy Izuku didn't recognize spoke up. "Hey get your own team member!" he stated. Ojiro looked like he was out of it. Izuku pushed him with a bit of telekinesis breaking the hold of whatever had him.

"Why don't we ask him whose team he wants to be on?" Izuku asked the purple-haired teen. Ojiro glared at the purple-haired team. He shook his head at the other teen.

A presence grabbed hold of his mind, but he knew what psychic pressure felt like. It was strong much stronger than his psychic defenses. Then super generation kicked in fighting the hold. Eventually, the regeneration won out and he broke free. Blood was dripping from his nose.

"Holy crap, what are you?" the purple-haired teen asked holding his head.

"That was unpleasant. Whatever you did don't do it again," Izuku warned walking away.

The rest of his team looked worried. "Are you okay? You're bleeding from the nose," Mei asked. The green-haired teen produced a napkin and wiped off his nose.

"That guy's quirk had a hold of my mind briefly. It was psychic in nature and strong. Super regeneration broke his hold, but hurt me in the process," Izuku shrugged turning to Ojiro, "Join my team, Ojiro-san."

"Sure, you saved me there," Ojiro smiled.

"Let's report in then," Izuku nodded.

Ojiro took point. Uraraka was the right and Mei to the left. Izuku stood as the rider. 10,000,305 points were written on his headband. Izuku intended to only play defense as keeping such a huge target on his back would do wonders for exposure. The green-haired teen looked around the arena and spotted the myriad of other teams.

Todoroki, Kaminari, Iida, and Yaoyorozu were all grouped together. Bakugo, Kirishima, Mina, and Sero were a team. The vine lady, metallic eyelashes..?, all teeth, and normal guy were another team. They looked like class 1-B. He'd have to get there names later. Beyond them there wasn't too many surprises together.

Izuku will admit it was odd seeing Shoji, Mineta, and Asui working together. It wasn't a bad match up actually. It was strategy time as the clock ticked down. Bakugo more than likely will go for Izuku. The rest of the class will probably avoid him seeking out easier marks. No one knows how many are advancing, but its safe to say that number 1-4 will have the best chance to move on. Class 1-B couldn't be ruled out either. They were fellow hero course students and therefore just as dangerous as any other team. If he had to guess class 1-B would be gunning for him the most. What's worse is he was at a significant disadvantage knowing almost nothing about them. Still he couldn't risk hitting or getting hit by any of them.

"Get ready for whatever class 1-B has up their sleeve. That'll be our struggle since it looks like our fellow classmates are going to ignore us," Izuku relayed to his horsemen/women.

"Got it boss. Give me the word and we can boost out of anything," Mei replied.

"Let me know when you're going to use those empowered explosions and I'll do my best to brace us for them," Ojiro commented stamping his tail to the ground.

"I'll handle the brunt of the Force Nullification. Still haven't caught up to me, huh?" Uraraka teased sticking her tongue out at Izuku. He smirked and cracked his knuckles.

"Time's Up! Begin the cavalry battle!" Midnight shouted at the sound of a buzzer.

Everyone at once put their plans into action. Izuku was more than right. Team vines and a guy with the cockiest look on his face turned their ire to him first. The concrete below them softened and they started to sink.

"Uraraka! Mei! Now!" Izuku shouted earning a nod from the duo. Uraraka quickly touched everyone with her free hand. The sinking stopped. Mei then pressed a button on her belt. Just like that the quartet shot up into the air. While in the air, Izuku guided them with weak blasts. Then Izuku almost got blindside by a fast moving projectile. One named Katsuki.

He had ducked the first attempt and directed them towards the ground. Then he canceled her quirk and activated his own. Izuku blasted away from the group meeting Katsuki in the air. Activating full body Power Stockpile his speed and strength shot up. The next pass Izuku was ready to counter Katsuki. Thanks to combat training with Momo the power up was no longer every muscle. It was just the ones that he needed. Arms, Legs, chest, and eyes were empowered. This had raised the time limit from 10 minutes to around 34 minutes. Izuku enveloped his hands in psychic energy. Katsuki reached out both grab or an explosion. The green-haired teen parried by grabbing his wrist and letting the momentum Katsuki had built up spin him. Katsuki had been parried in a way that prevented him from using his other hand to attack. Then he added his own explosions increasing the speed they were spinning at. Countering Izuku's momentum at this point would be too costly to Katsuki. After nearly a dozen rotations, Katsuki was hurled from the sky at his teammates. For the most part Katsuki had allowed himself to get thrown. The blonde teen used a few choice explosion to slow himself down. He landed on what was a harden Kirishima.

Izuku floated in midair. "Is that even legal!?" Present Mic commented on.

"'Neither rider touched the ground. I will allow it!" Midnight ruled.

While being in midair was great and all, it wasn't ideal. He could maneuver but it was exaggerated. Any two coordinated attacks could bring him down. Which almost happened. Vines shot up from the ground. Izuku had narrowly dodged them. Those were much faster than expected. Then a net had been shot at him. _Most likely Momo_, he cursed. If not for his telekinesis and empowerment that would have worked. He cut the net cleanly in two and let it harmlessly pass him. It was at this point Izuku decided going back to his team was optimal.

His teammates had been watching with bated breath. Izuku was good, but a barrage of aerial attacks could have brought him down. His teammates knew he had better odds on the ground and even better odds if they were together.

"Nice show, Izuku, we've got company though," Mei stated when Izuku landed back with them.

"Vines and the smug looking guy, huh? These guys are relentless," Izuku commented smirking.

Ojiro looked over his shoulder at Izuku, "Its like you want to face off with these guys."

The green-haired teen only grinned at the comment. "Its not like we know any of them yet. We can apologize later for beating them," Uraraka stated gripping harder onto Izuku's foot.

"Let's charge the smug looking guy. He's got an air of superiority on him," Izuku let some Stockpile crackle over his skin.

They were off. Izuku applied 60% Force Nullification to himself.

"Oh so class 1-A does have a backbone! I'll show you just how superior class 1-B is!" the smug looking guy shouted from his spot.

"Ojiro, I'm going to use one blast, 30%," Izuku whispered before engaging the man's banter, "Of course 1-A has a backbone! Last time I heard we were at USJ and you weren't!"

"You, ingrate! I'll show you first hand the strength we have," the man retorted. Something odd appeared on Izuku's telekinetic radar. Solid Air? He raised up his palm. The grin from the smug looking bastard told him he knew. Izuku adjusted the blast from palm to finger. An explodo-bullet ripped through the solid air shattering it like glass. The shot just missed the bastard.

Midnight was keeping a close eye on Izuku and that had almost broken the rules. The two teams got in close.

"I like you spunk!" Izuku had taken a moment to memorize the point totals and all the teams present. The rider was what the team was name after. "Monoma-san, right?" Izuku asked.

Monoma rose an eyebrow, "Deduced that you dunce? How long did that take you?"

_Trying to goad me into recklessness? Nice try,_ Izuku grinned, "Dunce? Is that the best you got?"

"Is your ego so large you need another hit to keep it going? Its just like you of class 1-A to think you're so superior to the rest of us," he taunted smirking. They were close now. Izuku lunged with empowered base. Monoma parried the attack much to Izuku surprise. No quirk transfer nothing. Odd.

The teams pasted each other. "Copy type too, huh?" Izuku pointed out looking at Monoma, "A lesser copying quirk no less."

The other teen's eyes narrowed at Izuku. "Permanent copy type. That's a scary quirk. Almost villainous some would same, but I shalln't say," Monoma commented tapping the shoulder of his colleague. The other team which Izuku presumed as Tetsutetsu. He had some kind of steel skin quirk. After a quick look at Monoma they redirected their attention. Izuku then realized that class 1-B had coordinated their placement and who should be in the final round. Looks like they wanted to win the long game over the years. _Good luck with that. Class 1-A will leave you in the dust,_ Izuku thought watching the fights before him.

Katsuki had taken his one good shot at Izuku. Since he failed it was more worthwhile picking off weaker teams than go for the gold. The bastard wanted to play defense which was a godsend, because him on the offense would be tough to defend against. His telekinesis alone could knock out almost if not all the teams here. Todoroki seemed to have the same opinion.

The first goal for Katsuki was picking off all the weaker teams of class 1-A then class 1-B. Team Shoji was proving to be the most annoying team. Team Hagakure was his first target. She might be invisible but the headband wasn't.

"Taper, we're going for invisi-bitch's team. Then we're taking down the octopus and pipsqueaks," Katsuki commanded grinning. Kirishima was the strength of the team and allowed Katsuki to pull some gutsy moves. Sero was accurate enough to actually be useful. Mina was a lot stronger than she looked and her slippery acid was like an oil slick from those old school racing games.

His group ran for Hagakure's team. This made the group panic. Katsuki pushed down on Kirishima before blasted off from them. Hagakure's group consisted of Tokoyami, Koda, and Jirou. Dark Shadow came out causing Katsuki to blast the shadow. He adjusted his trajectory in midair and continued his restless pursuit.

Jirou's ear jacks shot out. Katsuki had to make a split second correction narrowly dodging the dual piercers. He swiped the headband. Then he blasted up and out. While in midair he placed the headband around his neck.

A large net had just missed him. He glared looking in the direction of Todoroki. Yaoyorozu must have been asked to take shots at anyone that decided flying was okay.

"Missed him. He's faster than I thought," Momo cursed her aim. Todoroki shrugged. He had two headbands around his neck and his original. She wanted to be in first, but second was also a fine place to settle for. After all they had opted for leaving Midoriya alone in favor of solidifying their second place. Then once Midoriya was lulled into a false sense of security they would strike. They were saving their big guns for that.

"Let's get that Monoma guy. His headband should be the last one we need," Todoroki deadpanned.

For a guy with such a powerful quirk he was more robot than human. So far Momo had followed his guidance. Something was off though. She had plans of her own. Originally, she only accepted because after Izuku he was the next best chance to win. If Izuku had asked she would have joined him.

Winning in this round mattered, but the last round was were the exposure was at. This was their first chance for the world to see them and know what the future holds.

They rushed for the team Monoma. The man grinned seeing them. "What another contender? Ah the prodigal child shows his face!"

Todoroki didn't replied and Momo doubted anything he could say would make Todoroki reply. Frost flowed to the floor and then speed towards Team Monoma. The frost hit a wall of solid air. But it wasn't enough to half it at all. The frost overwhelmed them and froze them up to the knees.

Based on the exchange that Izuku had with the rider, whatever quirk he had wasn't compatible with Izuku's. Mutant-types were generally not accepted. Monoma looked normal enough. That ruled out mutant-type. Momo's only other conclusion was a quirk that was similar to Izuku's. Maybe another copying quirk and if those quirks touched one of two conclusions would happen: one, nothing. They both have the same components so there is nothing to 'trade'. Two, empower each other. Both quirks double up on the copying part of each others quirk. While for Izuku this wouldn't be an upgrade, but for Monoma it would be.

Todoroki must have come up with the same conclusion as he was not going to get anywhere near Monoma. "Yaoyorozu-san, now!" Todoroki commanded. She tossed a white rubber blanket over the group barring Kaminari. Monoma must have realized the strategy but had no way to stop it.

Kaminari discharged about 400,000 volts in the direction of Monoma. Well no direction he was just the closest conductor. This had stunned his whole team. Team Todoroki moved in closed and snatched the headband with little to no resistance. Now Izuku was next. Or at least the attempt at him was next. They would have to use the rubber blanket one more time.

Being able to watch in basically a front row seat was amazing. Izuku had to give prompts to Todoroki for coming up with a solution that didn't involve getting hit by his own quirk. Bakugo was going toe to toe with team Tetsutetsu. Bakugo was in fourth and Tetsutetsu was in third. There was about 2 minutes left on the timer.

Izuku had a suspicion that Todoroki was going to pull something. He wasn't wrong. The engine on Iida revved up and in an instant Team Todoroki had crossed the field. They were now only a few meters (6-9 feet) from Izuku. Then a rubber blanket was thrown over the group.

Izuku narrowed his eyes and thought, _Nice try, but I already saw it once._ The electricity crackled. Everyone but Izuku was worried about the outcome. Power was surged into telekinesis. He had to hold up his arms into order to maintain the shape. A column of psychic energy was erected around them extending 10 meters up (~33ft) and covered the ground. The green haze of psychic energy was almost visible. The electric bomb exploded.

Kaminari would be useless after this. The electricity flowed around the barrier and dissipated doing no damage. Izuku had made a gamble on his psychic wall. He didn't know that psychic energy had zero conductivity, but he did now.

Frost surrounded them and crept up the barrier. Just holding the barrier strained Izuku's power. Power Stockpile was being drained at around 1% per 10 seconds. Just under two minutes left. If he had to he would hold out. That plan failed when the frost intensified significantly. Somehow he was applying pressure using the ice. What was a thin layer turned into a nearly foot thick wall. 1% grew to 8% per 10 seconds. He was at his limit.

"We need to get out, Midoriya!" Uraraka yelled.

"Which way is safe?" Izuku replied straining to maintain his wall. Blood started to drip from his nose. Mei was the first to notice. Ojiro was calm and pointed his tail in one direction.

"Alright brace for 30% output!" Izuku shouted pointing a palm in the provided direction. An explosion tore a huge hole through the ice. They all speed through the opening. Another wave of ice came at them Izuku countered with another explosion. The green-haired teen dropped his telekinetic wall and sighed in relief. His head was pounding and his vision blurred. Super regeneration was hard at work limiting the damage.

Izuku was ready to defend himself again and leveled a palm at Todoroki. The white and red hair teen just glared back.

\- In the Stands -

Endeavor couldn't help but grin at the opportunity before him. Midoriya was more than a worthy opponent for his Shoto. He even dared to think that Izuku really could reach for All Might's spot. No matter he had to have a chat with the lad. If not to spur him on but to make him a deal.

"What a stand off folks! Looks like Team Todoroki is unable to move, but with the force of nature that the team captain is; no one is daring to take the headband!" Present Mic called out.

"What do you think of this outcome, Eraserhead?" Mic asked his fellow announcer.

"I think our number one isn't taking this competition seriously," Aizawa deadpanned on the speakers.

"I don't know about that. It looks like Todoroki gave him a hell of a stir," Present Mic rebutted.

"He's the only one out there that didn't go for another headband," Aizawa stated ending the commentary.

The buzzer sounded. "You have it folks that's the end of round 2! Congratulations Team Midoriya, you managed to hold onto number 1!" Midnight congratulated.

1st was Team Midoriya. 2nd was Team Todoroki. 3rd was Team Tetsutetsu. 4th was Team Bakugo. 5th was Team Shinso. No other team had any points left.

"From these winners, the top 16 will move on," Midnight declared, "Let's see what the final round will be!" The holographic screen was back and another roulette rolling. Tournament Battle was the category selected. The crowd exploded. They loved a good old fashioned 1v1 tournament.

Endeavor's grin was almost villainous. This was the opportunity he was hoping for.

"Before we continue let's take a break. We need to setup the ring and the matches," Midnight stated walking down from the stage. A few of the students came up to her and requested something. Midoriya was exiting the arena. This was Endeavor's chance.

\- Random Hallway within the Stadium -

Izuku was staring down the number 2 hero. For some reason Endeavor wanted to have a chat with him. It was odd, but he didn't mind.

"Midoriya-san, I have a request for you," Endeavor asked.

"That's unusual. What could I do for you?" Izuku asked raising an eyebrow.

"If you didn't know already Shoto is my son. I want him to become a hero so great that he can overtake All Might," Endeavor explained earning a scoff from Izuku. Izuku was done with this conversation. He gained nothing tackling whatever emotional baggage was here.

"Let me guess. You want me to make him use his fire? How about no thanks," Izuku retorted.

"There is no way he can grow without using the full power of his quirk. If you want to be the Symbol of Peace isn't a good idea to have strong comrades?" Endeavor rebutted grinning. This young man had a strong spirit.

"That's projecting. All Might didn't have any equals and neither will I. I'm sorry but if he had no intention to use his power even when it could help, then I have no reason to believe that he can change," Izuku was cold this time.

"Hellflame. That's my offer. If you can break him of his stupor then I will hand you my power," Endeavor pleaded. This caught Izuku off guard. This must be more than a desire to beat All Might. There might be some fatherly love in there.

"I.. I can't accept that. If you really want me to get through to him, I can't back stab him first. Look maybe I'll have a chat with him. I too have a score to settle with him," Izuku sighed earning a raised eyebrow from Endeavor.

"Fair enough. Still if you manage to get him to see reason. My quirk will be yours. Just ask for it," Endeavor left the offer open. They parted ways. Izuku had a lot swirling in his head. It would have wait until later.


	14. Battle Tournament - Part 1

First Round Versus:

First Half:

Hatsume vs Kirishima

Iida vs Bakugo

Shiozaki vs Tetsutetsu

Uraraka vs Sato

Second Half:

Midoriya vs Shinso

Ojiro vs Kaminari

Todoroki vs Mina

Yaoyorozu vs Sero

Most of class 1-A was in the stands. Hatsume and Kirishima were first. Izuku couldn't help but laugh at the thought. The rest of the class looked worried. He acting insane and a bit unstable. Momo had taken a spot to his left. Ojiro to his right. Katsuki behind him.

"What the fuck, Izuku?" Katsuki broke the silence or laughter.

"I'm just imagining the crap Kirishima agreed to and just how Mei is going to make him regret it," Izuku had calmed down.

"Make him regret it?" Momo asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh yeah. She's not a hero course student. She's a support course student and what do support course student do with so many eyes on them?" Izuku couldn't help laugh at the thought. Momo smirked and chuckled.

"I do feel bad for him," Ojiro spoke up frowning.

"I told her 15 minutes tops. If it was up to her 30 minutes of products and advertising would be on the menu," Izuku grimaced thinking about it.

The next 16 minutes was exactly as Izuku had stated. Lists upon lists of products and demonstrations. Kirishima was trying to fight, but her inventions made it impossible to control himself and the flow of combat. But true to her word to Izuku, she walked out of the ring.

"Well, that was something all right. Let's get on with our actual first match then," Present Mic announced.

Katsuki and Iida had already been in the locker rooms for about 3 minutes now. If not for Izuku they would have waited 16 minutes in the locker rooms.

The two students walked out into the arena. "Tenya Iida, from the famous Iida hero family. The living engine!"

"Then we have his opponent Katsuki Bakugo! His explosive quirk and fury make him a strong contender. Welcome the explosive teen!"

\- Katsuki vs Tenya -

Katsuki had mentally prepared himself for the fight to some degree. Iida was fast and those kicks could hurt. If he could get him with a few good explosions it would be his. The match could be decided immediately or Iida might take his time. Either scenario Katsuki was prepared.

They both entered the concrete arena. Midnight was there. She would be the referee along with Cementoss to stop any crazy damage or death. "Are you both ready?" Midnight asked earning a nod from both Iida and Bakugo.

She walked off the side with Cementoss. "Begin!" She shouted.

Katsuki and Iida had a stand off. They were both ready to act, but it would be difficult for either party to get a clean shot right off the bat. Iida got close enough but still outside of the blast radius. The taller boy started to walk around Katsuki staying just out of range. Then he picked up speed. Then into a sprint. The engine revved and Iida was moving too fast for Katsuki to just hit.

Iida had proven he could stop and turn on a dime. A feat that probably hurt to do, but would make hitting him with an explosion much harder as it would leave Katsuki open to retaliation.

Iida cut in and came for Katsuki. He'd have a split second to react or get hit. The speedy demon pivoted once he got close enough. Bakugo raised up his arm to defend. At the same time he reached out with his palm. Iida redirected his kick slightly making Katsuki change his block. The kick connected pushing Katsuki. The explosions ripped loose and caught Iida mostly in the chest. It was dampened greatly.

The exchange was in Katsuki's favor. Not hesitating one moment, Katsuki rocketed towards Iida. Instead of retreating, Iida stepped in after Katsuki planted his feet. The speed demon parried the next blast away and punched Katsuki square in the face.

That was within Katsuki's plan. He brought up his other hand and detonated another explosion. This one connected well. Iida's shirt was blown to smithereens. The rest of the force knocked away the taller teen a few meters (7-10 ft). The attack was followed up with a 60% blast that could easily cross the stage.

Iida bolted and dodged the blast. Now was the time. "Recripro Burst!" Iida called out his engines going into overdrive. Blue flames came from his calf engines. Then in a blink of an eye Iida crossed the stage.

This was not what Katsuki predicted, but his instincts took over. The incoming kick was aimed at his ribs.

As soon as it connected Katsuki held onto Iida's leg. This would unbalance the taller teen as the force he used would be more than enough to move both of them. Bones snapped. Katsuki gritted his teeth. An explosion was made at point-blank range. Iida brought up his arms but the blast had a ton of force. The concussive forces alone KO'd Iida. His arms got burned from the blast.

Katsuki let go and Iida dropped to the ground.

"Bakugo wins by knock out," Midnight announced. The explosive teen was wincing as he breathed.

"The second bout ended with a blast! Let's get our next two contenders out here while Cementoss is repairing the minor damage to the field," Present Mic requested.

\- Shiozaki vs Tetsutetsu -

Ibara didn't want to go up against her classmate in the first round, but the Lord was not kind today. She made a quick prayer, "Please, let him forgive me for what I'm about to do." The vine-haired girl made her way out to the stage.

"Welcome, the assassin of class 1-B, Ibara Shiozaki! Her vines could struggle the life out of you!" Present Mic declared.

She spoke up loud enough for the camera to pick up, "Umm, I am no assassin. I wish no violence upon my fellow man." She was more an angel than a sinner.

"Ah, my bad, welcome the Angel, Ibara Shiozaki!" Present Mic apologized.

"Welcome, the ironclad teen, Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu! His steel can stand any assault!" Present Mic declared.

"Tetsutetsu-san, I am sorry. Lord forgive me," she preempted. The steel man gulped knowing just how strong she was.

"Are you both ready?" Midnight asked. They nodded. Again she walked to the side lines. "Begin!"

Ibara wanted to give her opponents one chance to give up and repent, but she knew better with Tetsutetsu. He wasn't going to back down. Her vines shot through the ground. Tetsutetsu had been running at her. The vines all at once shot up from the ground. He was in second entrapped by the vines. They were almost as strong as steel. Maybe if he had a way to cut them it would be a challenge, but a simple melee fighter was no match for her.

Midnight asked from the side, "Tetsutetsu, are you no longer able to fight?" Tetsutetsu struggled but to no avail. He sighed and nodded.

"Ibara Shiozaki wins. Her opponent is no longer able to move," Midnight declared. Ibara let go of Tetsutetsu.

"I know I didn't have a chance but it was worth a try," Tetsutetsu stated shrugging.

"That was one quick match folks. Let's get our fourth round contenders out here," Present Mic announced.

\- Uraraka vs Sato -

Uraraka was a bit nervous. All Might was watching. The world was watching. Early that day he had told her she was ready, but wanted to see how she would do on her own.

"Welcome Rikido Sato, the sugar berserker! With a gram of sugar he could lift a car!" Present Mic claimed.

Aizawa chimed in, "He can't do that. I'd take 90 grams (~3oz) of sugar for a feat like that."

"On the other corner, we have the girl I'm personally voting for! Ochako Uraraka! The girl that gravity can't hold down!" Present Mic admitted.

Uraraka took a deep breath. Sato was ready to go, but fighting her would be incredibly difficult for him. Her face went from nice to full serious. Sato panicked a bit her demeanor in combat mode was like another person.

"Are you ready?" Midnight asked. Sato slowly nodded.

"I'm good to go," Uraraka replied. Her stance was bent knees and hands out. Spending a few sessions with Izuku had taught her a lot about fighting. The number one thing was: she wasn't ready. Her limit was higher, but his control and understanding was greater. Even his use of One For All was impressive.

"Begin!"

Ochako sprinted at Sato. He got in a defense stance. He had to dodge and attack somehow. Even a single misstep and she could make him weightless.

She was fairly quick. Her first swipe was slow and obvious to avoid. Sato dodged and countered. Ochako dodged the punch almost out of instinct. The next swipe was faster. Again a dodge and counter. She was trying to gauge his speed and determined he was slower than she was used to.

This time a feint. She thrust her palm at him making a fist as she got close. Sato dodged realizing it was a feint to late. He was in the mist of countering. She sidestepped and grabbed his wrist. His fate was sealed.

She pivoted again and wiped him out of the ring. Releasing her quirk as soon as he cleared the area. A soft thud was all Midnight heard.

"Ochako Uraraka wins via ring out!" Midnight declared.

"That's what I'm talking about folks! That was some quirk match up folks. Let's get our next contenders out here!" Present Mic commented.

\- Midoriya vs Shinso -

This was the fight the crowd was looking for. The true underdog vs the Symbol of Peace. Izuku was waving to the crowd and getting cheers. Shinso looked like he had a permanent dark cloud over him.

"Let's welcome Izuku Midoriya, the man claiming to be the next Symbol of Peace!" Present Mic said and the crowd exploded.

"His opponent is Hitoshi Shinso and it has been a miracle that a general course student has made it this far!" Present Mic admitted.

Aizawa felt the need to speak up, "The entrance exam is geared towards combat type quirks. I wouldn't count him out yet."

"I wonder, Shinso-san, are you going to make the mistake I mentioned earlier?" Izuku taunted standing about 5 meters (16ft) from him.

"Its all I got. I'm not as blessed as you," Shinso retorted.

Midnight looked at the two a bit worried. "Are you both ready?" she asked.

Midoriya nodded and so did Shinso.

"Begin!"

"Come on Midoriya! Show the world that you can beat a helpless general course student like me! I wasn't born gifted like you. My quirk has been one hell of a burden! People always looking down on me for having a villainous quirk! What do you say Midoriya? Are you looking down on me too?" Shinso taunted trying to get a rise from Midoriya.

Izuku's reply was cold and calculated. Green lightning surged and he held up his palm, "Dodge." Shinso wasn't quick enough to use his quirk and dodge effectively. But he had grabbed hold of Midoriya. Part of his shirt was burned away and his shoulder was burned.

Midoriya's arms dropped and his blank look had told everyone it had worked. "You are one beast, Midoriya. Turn around and walk out," Shinso commanded.

Izuku was in a haze. His mind was still his own. Super regeneration was fighting the intruder off relentlessly. It hurt like hell. Instead of trying to fight psychic to psychic, he'd go psychic to physical. He surged power into his telekinesis. It still worked and he knew a nudge could break him out of it. Using a telekinetic fist he thwomped Shinso across the face. It wasn't like getting punched by Izuku, but it had a bit of impact.

"How is that possible?" Shinso asked feeling Izuku punch himself out of the hold.

"That was a pain," Izuku replied wiping away blood from his nose. "If you're not careful you could kill me with that!" Izuku shouted turning to Shinso. The purple-haired teen was taken back by this.

"That's not fair! You have it all! Even mind control can't stop you!" Shinso shouted from across the ring.

"Of course its not. But that's an invaluable quirk. I'll show you who the truly villainous looking one is!" Izuku was hit with another mind control only to break it instantly. He started to advance on Shinso. Green Lightning arced around his body. His form bulked up slightly. His eyes started to glow green and menacing. "With but a simple touch. I could take your quirk. Almost any quirk and you want to talk to me about villainous?!" Izuku shouted at Shinso before whispering when he got close, "They are worried I could be the singularity. Worried that I could become a god."

Then he moved just as fast as Iida's Recripro Burst. A full palm made contact with Shinso chest. Force Nullification activated before his force applied. Shinso shot out of the ring. Izuku slowed him down and released his quirk.

"Izuku Midoriya wins by ring out!" Midnight declared the crowd exploded. Midoriya raised a fist and powered down. He then jumped out of the ring and go over to Shinso. The purple-haired teen was struggling in pain. Izuku reached out, "Don't worry its coated in psychic energy. You know if you want to be a hero. Aizawa-sensei said that if general course students do well enough they could get into the hero course."

Shinso grabbed Izuku's hand. It was as he said. The thin filament of psychic energy felt smooth and hard. It was like steel or diamond. "Thanks, maybe I'll have to ask," Shinso replied getting pulled to his feet.

"Look at the display of sportsmanship folks. That man really might just be a new Symbol of Peace!" Present Mic commented.

"Yeah, bulk up a bit too. You'll need it, but I think you got a great quirk to be a hero," Izuku padded Shinso's back as they separated ways.

\- Ojiro vs Kaminari -

This was an odd match up that was not in the favor of one of them. Mashirao was pretty confident in his martial skills, but hitting someone that was literally a human stun gun was not optimal. Fast hard strikes would be the choice.

"Welcome, Denki Kaminari! He's a human stun gun with a fun, easygoing personality!" Present Mic stated.

"His opponent is the man of amazing skill! Mashirao Ojiro, martial artist extraordinaire!" Present Mic declared.

"I'm not that extraordinary," Mashirao shrugged his shoulders.

"You're the only one in class with them," Kaminari stated across the ring.

"Are you two ready?" Midnight asked. They both nodded.

"Begin!"

Mashirao gaped the distance in two tail lunges. The first hit was ludicrously hard. Kaminari double over from the hit and clenched his stomach. The martial artist reeled from the electrical discharge. The muscles in his right arm were spasming from the electricity.

Kaminari stood up right trying his best to look tough. Another hard strike rattled his chest just under his sternum. Again the recoil for Mashirao was quite strong, but the desired effect was reached. Kaminari now had a hard time breathing and was struggling to a degree.

The martial artist couldn't make a fist now. His muscles were completely shot from the huge dose of electricity. Now for kicking counter attacks. Kaminari had recovered enough to actually attack. The human stun gun charged his fists. Dodging his attacks was easy enough. It was kind of annoying that his arms didn't work right.

The tailman pivoted back and around Kaminari. The electric teen turned too slowly. A tail powered kick hit him in the ribs. Bones cracked and most electricity coursed. Mashirao now had one good leg and a tail. Kaminari was almost out for the count though. His troubled breathing was now until the end of the match.

"All.. right.. that's.. it!" Kaminari said in between breaths. The electricity flowed across his body. His going to use his ultimate move. If Mashirao got hit by it fully it would incapacitate him. The tailman crouched and wound up his tail. He had a chance to reduce the damage. If he could get far enough away it would reduce the impact of the electricity.

"1.3 million volt indiscriminate blast!" Kaminari yelled out as the electricity discharged. Mashirao kicked off with tail and leg. He got about 11 meters (36ft) in the air. The electricity reached him at about 12% potency. His tail took the brunt of the attack. The tailman landed hard and rolled. He hurt his right leg pretty good landing. Kaminari was in derp mode though. All Mashirao had to was nicely escort him off stage.

"Mashirao Ojiro wins by ring out!" Midnight declared.

"If you don't mind. I'll help him get back to class. He's out of it for about 10-15 minutes," Ojiro requested. Midnight merely nodded.

"Another show of sportsmanship! Just like the hero class to have some good eggs in it," Present Mic added.

\- Todoroki vs Mina -

The two students walked out onto the stage. Shoto spotted his father and gritted his teeth. He hated the man. His father had been missing from the stands immediately after the break was called. This meant he had to talk to someone. That someone was probably Midoriya. The green-haired teen was on the same side of the bracket with him. If Shoto was being honest he was the _only_ one that he was worried about beating. If what Yaoyorozu had shown during the rescue training was a fraction of his power than the real deal would be much harder to beat. Seeing him hold out for nearly a minute under the pressure of his ice made Shoto wonder if his full power would even be enough.

His fire after all was mostly heat and little force. A psychic wedge could easily split a beam of fire and make him wide open. He shook his head, no fire, never.

Mina faced him from across the stage. She might be able to escape his ice. But Shoto could launch out about 10 massive ice waves before hypothermia kicked in.

"Are you two ready?" Midnight asked. Mina nodded dropping her stance low. Shoto nodded.

"Begin!"

The ice was like a reflex it could be summoned at will. Changing the intensity was just a matter of flexing the muscle a bit more. Quirks are physical parts of us after all. The glacial that sprouted from his foot took the whole stadium by surprise.

Mina's Acid quickly ate through the ice, freeing her. This was slightly annoying to Shoto. Another ice wave was produced this time he didn't leave her head exposed. Within the ice he could feel her sort of. It wasn't exactly, but he could feel where the ice wasn't as he could push on it. More and more ice melted. Clearly unfocused huge blasts weren't enough to imprison her. She was skating towards him using his own ice. He lifted up his right arm. Ice formed and then hit her like a ton of bricks. He kept pushing her adding more and more ice. She was clearly out but hadn't touched the ground yet. Apparently, she was good enough to realize were she was and not melt all the ice around her. Too late though. Shoto swiped his left arm across the ice and it started to melt in an instant. The piece holding her up and out of the ring cracked then fell apart.

Mina tried to jump and make the ring but came up a meter or two short.

"Shoto Todoroki wins by ring out!" Midnight declared.

Not the most satisfactory outcome but predictably in his favor. The next match would be easy regardless who won, but the Finals round would be a different story. There was no way Ojiro could beat Midoriya. Yaoyorozu and Sero stood no chance against Todoroki. He was fairly confident he could even beat Bakugo.

Mina had yelled something at him and Present Mic had made an announcement but he didn't care.

What annoyed Shoto the most was running into his father after the match. "Good match. She had a decent counter but didn't have the ability or experience to back it up," Endeavor pointed out.

"That much is obvious. Still most of them fall short to my expectations," Shoto retorted glaring daggers.

"What about Midoriya?" Endeavor rebutted grinning. Shoto looked unnerved for an instant.

"He's beyond expectations. But I think I can still beat him," Shoto stated not entirely confident in that answer.

"I doubt that. I had a chat with the boy and he was not too happy with you," Endeavor warned.

Shoto was more than a bit pissed hearing that, "What did you talk about?!"

"Oh, nothing much. He's a tough kid. Refused outright any deal I tried to make," Endeavor chuckled.

Hearing that calmed down Shoto. But he could be lying. He'd have to have a chat with Midoriya. "So what was the point talking to me? Pep talk?" Shoto questioned.

"Midoriya will beat you if you don't try. Just your ice **isn't **enough," Endeavor threatened.

This pissed off Shoto to no end. He was done talking. "I will," was the last thing Shoto said to his father.

\- Yaoyorozu vs Sero -

Momo thought Sero's quirk for a moment. A steel sword would be the best defense and offense. She'd dual wield if she had to. Nope, she definitely will be dual wielding. The two of them walked onto the stage. It was still a bit wet from Todoroki, but it was clearing up quick enough.

"Are you two ready?" Midnight asked. Momo was stretching but nodded. Sero nodded as well.

"Begin!"

A handle popped out of Momo's arm. She brandished the sword slicing a piece of tape in two. Then another handle popped out from her opposite arm. Momo pulled that one out too. Her right hand sword was forward and proper with the left hand being wielded backwards.

Sero went from a few tape strands to shooting them out like a madman. If a few landed and then stuck to the ground it would be his win. Momo wasn't completely trained with swords but still better than a beginner.

She was a whirlwind of blade. At some point she had flipped her left hand to proper to increase efficiency. Making progress towards him was slow. If he tried to move or re-position she could get a huge lead on him and if she got to him he would be done for.

Sero was panicking. He glanced over and shot out a tape strand. He used it to reel over. A sword flew through his tape and he skidded to the ground on his side. Momo leapt at him. He shot a strand at her in midair. She sliced it out of the way. Landing near him it was only a moment before she was on him.

In his panic he shot tape after tape at her. It was completely futile.

She commanded, "Yield." A sword was brandished at Sero's throat.

"I yield!" Sero yelled.

"Momo Yaoyorozu wins by surrender!" Midnight declared.

She helped him up. _Now to face one of the three monster of class 1-A_, Momo grimaced. She had idea how to beat him. If she could convince Izuku for a few minutes of his power that would work, but that would be cheating. She can't cheat out in the real world.

"Alright, everyone that's the end of the first round of fights! It's time for a lunch break!" Midnight declared walking from the referee's area.

\- Lunch Room -

Izuku's injuries had completely helped by this point. His Power Stockpile was at around 83%. He was going to need it for Todoroki. Speaking off. The white and red haired teen was staring daggers at him. It had been like this since Todoroki's match. Either he was trying to kill Izuku before the match or he had something he wanted to say.

The green-haired teen engaged first. He slammed down his hands in front of Todoroki. "You've been glaring daggers at me. Usually, that's Katsuki's job. If you want to chat then I'm all ears," Izuku matched Todoroki's intense look.

"Fine. I was going to approach you but this works better," Todoroki admitted. Izuku followed Todoroki out and around seemingly random turns. This looked like a good place to murder someone without anyone seeing.

"What deal did you make with my father?!" Todoroki opened with.

That was surprising yet not completely outside the realm that a father would take to push someone. He didn't really know considering he never knew his father. "He attempted too. In fact the offer still stands, but I refuse to take it," Izuku replied.

"What was the deal?" Todoroki reiterated.

"His quirk for making me use yours. Not that it would help much but I don't think that's important here," Izuku shrugged.

"No its not. The point is I made a promise to myself that I would be a hero just using my ice and not his flames," Todoroki explained. This was literally the most stupid thing Izuku had ever heard. He knew better than anyone else how it felt using another person's quirk. He had to abandon that train of thought years ago. What and how his quirk worked was his and his alone. Not even the Nemu could combine quirks like he could. As far as he could tell he didn't have any limit on it either. Just was his head space could handle really. As long as he got them slow enough it would be easy to sort them out.

"That's stupid," Izuku bluntly replied. Well it more of slipped out.

Todoroki looked angry now. "You wouldn't understand! My father made me for a reason. I never asked to be his perfect creation," Todoroki retorted.

"I think I'm more uniquely qualified to understand than anyone else. I use other people's quirks and its not random either. I know who each and every one of them are. I know you were made to be better than All Might! He told me about that. What I don't understand is how you can justify not using your power to save people!" Izuku shouted. This time he was mad. He looked back to the Nemu. Todoroki could have crippled the beast long enough for them to make a difference.

"What are you talking about?" Todoroki was a bit confused.

"The USJ incident. You had the power to put down that creature. There was no reason that anyone else should have been injured by it!" Izuku replied still a bit angry.

Todoroki looked away. It was shame, "I.. I.."

"If that's the best you can muster then tell me why its so important to keep your promise! You owe me that much!" Izuku retorted this time his finger was up and nearly at Todoroki's chest.

Todoroki sighed. He was right. "I'm the youngest of four. But I was the only one deemed to be a 'success'. If you ever heard of quirk marriages? That is exactly what my father intended. My mother has a powerful ice quirk and I was the only one to inherit both of them. Training started early. I was 5 when he started to train me. But it was too intense for me to handle. I was puking and crying all the time. My mother defended me only to get beat by Endeavor," Todoroki calmed himself. He was starting to get emotional.

"One day, my mother just couldn't take it anymore. She was on the phone with her mother and I guess something just snapped. I had been watching her at some point. Then she just broke seeing me. She gave me this burn," He pointed to his facial burn, "After that Endeavor placed her in a mental ward. She's been there for years."

"Sounds like you're wracked with guilt and shame. Thanks for telling me. I'll keep it a secret. I'd hate for your stoic image to be ruined," Izuku said walking away.

"I'm not going to use my fire against you! I won't break my promise for that man," Todoroki shouted in defiance. Izuku sighed and continued walking away.


	15. Battle Tournament - Part 2

Second Round:

Kirishima vs Bakugo

Shiozaki vs Uraraka

Midoriya vs Ojiro

Todoroki vs Yaoyorozu

"How's everyone doing after that lunch break!?" Present Mic called out earning a loud roaring cheer from the crowd.

"That's what I like to hear! Now let's continue and get to the heated semi-finals!" Present Mic declared.

Bakugo and Kirishima were already walking to the stage. "Its a classic fight: Rock vs Explosion who will win?" Present Mic hyped them.

Izuku was in the hero student's area. "Katsuki will win hands down. Its more of a question as to how long Kirishima-san can hold out," Izuku commented then getting pinched by Mina. Thankfully, he sensed it in advance and coated her hands. The pinch hurt a bit more being this very smooth, hard surface.

"Don't say that! They have an equal chance of victory! Kiri-kun just has to get a few good shots in!" Mina chastised sticking her tongue out at Izuku.

"That's true I suppose, but its not like Bakugo-san is just going to let that happen," Momo chimed in smirking.

"Yeah, Bakugo is crazy strong and just about the strongest one here. This should be a cake walk for him," Kaminari stated with a smug grin.

Mina smacked him too. They were going to bicker more but "Begin!" was called out. Kirishima made the first move.

\- Katsuki vs Kirishima -

Katsuki hoped that this guys ego could take getting thrashed by him. While harden was nice and all it wasn't explosion. Every punch Kirishima threw Katsuki sidestepped and ripped loose an explosion. It looked like the concussive force and heat were just absorbed by the defensive quirk. Katsuki rose an eyebrow. This was going to take longer than he thought it would take.

A dodge followed by an explosion. Another dodge then explosion. This was turning into a very repetitive fight. That was until Katsuki increased the power of his attacks. Instead of now just taking the hits and continuing. Kirishima was getting pushed back. He also would wince for a moment when they hit.

"Are you just going to be a punching bag?! Where was all that manliness?" Katsuki mocked grinning.

"Its manly to face your opponent head on! I can take it," Kirishima stated blocking another blast. That's when Kirishima really went on the offensive.

He rock man could power through a blast and still try to make an attack. This didn't completely or really at all catch Katsuki off guard. He was used to Izuku pulling shit with his multi-quirk fighting style. If anything that fight was distracting Katsuki. It was rattling around inside of his head.

Since the last time they fought Izuku had amassed a few more quirks. Nothing weak either. Uraraka's quirk, the nurse's quirk, and that monster's quirk or at least one of them. He wasn't completely sure what Izuku was capable of anymore. What's worse is that he only shown off using a few of them at once. He hasn't really gone all out and used all of his power up to this point.

He hoped the bastard was going to take him seriously in the championship round. Todoroki was powerful, but Katsuki doubted that the icy hot loser could defeat Izuku. He'll have to see though. It was going to be the second most intense match today.

Kirishima was starting to wince more and weaken. His quirk was approaching its limit. _About damn time!_ Katsuki thought sending another explosion into the teen. His strategy was paying off, well what amounted to a strategy. It was pretty simple: break his quirk and win. He was doing just that. Less and less of Kirishima was encased with his quirk.

What annoyed Katsuki the most was that this guy wasn't going down without being KO'd. That was becoming more apparent as Kirishima swapped tactics and stopped charging Katsuki outright. Instead he stayed close and engaged in pure hand to hand combat. It was a bit unfair because Kirishima could harden his fists. Still this somehow turned into a slug fest.

A fist connected to Katsuki's face and he was dazed momentarily. The hardened punch was like getting hit by a steel bat. It hurt and a few more of those could impair Katsuki considerably. Kirishima was looking much worse for wear. The rock teen's shirt had been burned off and he had minor burns across his arms.

Still this match had to be going on for almost 10 minutes. Kirishima definitely had attrition on his side. Too bad for him Katsuki hadn't used any 50% plus explosions. Those resulted in a bit of recoil and he wanted to save his ammo for later.

Katsuki decided this had gone on long enough. He dodged a punch and got his arm around Kirishima's neck. The man tried to harden his throat. Katsuki just had to continue applying force until the hardening wore out. The explosion teen had managed to get him into a full choke hold. It was only a matter of time before a) he passed out or b) tapped out.

Based on Kirishima's determination he was going to choose the former. Katsuki respected his choice and doubled down on choking him. Once Kirishima finally let limp in his arms he let go. Then he caught him by the arm figuring it would look bad to just let him fall to the ground.

"Katsuki Bakugo wins by KO!" Midnight declared.

"What an intense match! I hope you're ready for more folks! The heat is about to be turned to 11!" Present Mic boasted as the next two fighters came out on the stage.

\- Uraraka vs Shiozaki -

Ochako had seen what vine girl could do and didn't like her odds. She didn't know how her quirk would affect Shiozaki. If it did in fact nullify her force it could leave her open to attacks. If those vines could be controlled at will this would be a tough match up. All she had to do was dodge the first attack and activate her quirk.

"Begin!"

Shiozaki wasn't pulling any punches. The vine haired girl attacked right off the bat. She used a similar tactic from her last battle. Ochako stood perfectly still. The ground rumbled and then ruptured around her. She jumped applied her quirk and dodged into the air. The vines chased. She released her quirk and dove at them. Shiozaki seemed more than ready to meet her challenge. A vine missed her wrist and Ochako grabbed it. Quirk activation was in. Since the vines were connected to the girl the effect traveled all the way up to Shiozaki.

The vine-haired girl started to float away. She retracted her vines earning her some upwards momentum. Then she droves multiple vines through the ground as anchors. It was just as Ochako thought. The vines can move and apply force.

Time for an experiment. There was a lot of rubble on the ground. More than a few pieces were around the size of a basketball. Ochako picked up a piece and applied her quirk. Then like a slightly large dodgeball she chucked the rubble at Shiozaki. Ochako had tossed the piece at around 80km/h (49.7mph) at the vine-haired girl. The slab of concrete connected knocking the wind out of Shiozaki.

Based on her facial expression that shot at her hurt a lot. The concrete projectile's mass would not have been altered and therefore if used like a projectile it would be quite potent.

Ochako grinned and picked up a few more rocks. Shiozaki wasn't going to let another one land. Vines whipped the rocks out of the air, but the fractured rocks still maintained velocity. Quickly, Ochako realized she would have to work on her aim quite a bit if she hoped to use this more effectively. But for now the technique was producing results.

Once she had ran out of the small chunks, she moved to the bigger ones. These were kicked at Shiozaki at around 120km/h (74.5mph). Even when blocked the fragments still connected and stung. The vine-haired girl had cuts up her arms from blocking the shrapnel. The bigger net gain from the attack was pushing Shiozaki back. Her vines were still in the ring, but she was no long over it.

Shiozaki went on the offensive feeling a pause in the attacks. She used about half her vines to deal a devastating line smash on the arena. Ochako had just dodged the attack. With half of the vines away, that was the time to release.

At the same time, Ochako grabbed up three baseball sized pieces of concrete. One was hurled at were Shiozaki had dropped and promptly caught herself in time. The other two were tossed at the two vines that anchored her to the stage.

The vine-haired girl just as Ochako predicted caught herself from falling outside of the ring. She was about 30cm (1ft) from the ground. The baseball thrown at her connected right on her cheek. This was abrupt enough to daze her. It also had caused a minor concussion from the force alone. The other two rocks connected with the vines and knocked them out of the ground a little. This was more than enough to drop her that 30cm (1ft) and just touch the ground.

"Ochako Uraraka wins via ring out!" Midnight declared. Ochako slumped to her knees and rose up a fist. Shiozaki looked disappointed, but accepted her defeat. The two meet in the ring. Shiozaki reached out her hand to Ochako.

"Congratulations! Uraraka-san," Shiozaki said. Ochako let the other girl help her up. They shook hands.

"Sorry about hurting you," Ochako apologized.

"It was all apart of the lord's plan, so I accept the pain as just a part of this," Shiozaki nodded and gave a smile to Ochako.

"What a true underdog battle if I ever saw one! That was an impressive show of camaraderie!" Present Mic commented on.

\- Midoriya vs Ojiro -

"I don't suppose I can get you to go easy on me?" Ojiro chuckled staring down Midoriya.

"Sure, why not," Izuku shrugged smirking.

"What really?" Ojiro was confused.

"I'll make it fair and square. I'd hate to make it unfair and just ring you. I want to give you an opportunity to show your skill," Izuku admitted. Midnight smiled at that it was refreshing to her someone being so considerate of another.

"Begin!"

Green Lightning surged over Izuku's skin. Empowered base! He needed a better name for it. Something like Full Body or Full Cowl. The former sounded a bit weird he'll have to brainstorm it later. Ojiro was on him. The tailman didn't hesitate to take the fight to Izuku. In his base form Ojiro would have been just faster than Izuku if any of the past matches were an indication. However, versus the empowered form was another story.

Ojiro lead with an overhead tail slam. Izuku blocked the strike feeling a bit of pain. The tail attacks would have to be avoided, they were WAY more powerful than a normal strike. Izuku followed up the slam by pivoting and kicking high. Ojiro had just blocked the strike in time. He winced from the hard contact.

Both of them stepped back. Izuku got into a boxing stance and took a step in. The first jab was like lightning. Ojiro had just dodged the attack. The barrage of attacks that came next was beyond Ojiro expectations. That's when Ojiro's training kicked. In the case of fighting an opponent too fast the next best was to anticipate the attacks. This was exactly what Ojiro did. This left Ojiro with virtually no openings to exploit. Izuku was only attacking with brute force.

Then all of sudden Izuku moved to a free form fighting style. This style included grapples and holds. Ojiro found this out when an open hand came at him. When he tried to swat it away Izuku had gripped his wrist. Izuku pulled and almost lifted Ojiro off the ground. A strong fist connected with Ojiro's gut and he skid across the ring.

"We should definitely train later. The fact you can keep up with me is impressive. But now time to get serious," Izuku frowned extending his palm. A green explosion shook the stage and tore up the concrete. Ojiro had jumped into the air and dodged the attack. He was flying at Izuku. Another explosion kicked the martial artist out of the air. He skid across the arena shirt on fire.

The martial artist ripped off his shirt. He narrowed his eyes and started to circle to the right. Izuku was ready for anything. The tailman kicked off with his tail but stayed low. Another explosion detonated. Ojiro slipped under the blast and frazzled his hair a bit. The tailman pushed off the ground with his tail planted his foot and kicked with his other foot. Izuku blocked the kick with his arm and heard a crack.

_Tch, broke a bone,_ Izuku clicked his tongue. He grabbed the man's ankle before he could pull away. A green blast was leveled at the man at nearly point-blank range.

Ojiro's unconscious body snapped to the ground and he made a bit of a human shaped impact.

"Izuku Midoriya wins via KO!" Midnight declared. Izuku picked up Ojiro and with telekinesis to replace his right arm. He rose his right fist to the sky.

"What a displace of power! He's as honorable as they come!" Present Mic commented. Izuku then replaced his arm under Ojiro and walked out of the ring.

"Let's take a small break while Cementoss fixes the ring," Midnight stated getting the less than emotive man to get up from his concrete throne.

\- In the Infirmary -

Izuku laid Ojiro down on a bed. "You did a number on him knocking him out like that," Chiyo commented checking over the man.

"Its better than burning his skin horribly," Izuku retorted looking over at Kirishima. "How's he doing? Katsuki almost crushed his windpipe," Izuku kept this distance.

"You should heal. Your quirk is pretty good already," Chiyo suggested.

"I can't. I don't want to take his quirk," Izuku allowed the healing quirk to surge through his body. He pushed it through the pads on his fingers. He connected them to Ojiro's forehead and the healing quirk fired off. He targeted Ojiro's lunch. Apparently, the pads had enough nerves and blood flow to be a conduit for heal.

"I think that a horrible way to view it. You have the power to heal and help them. So shouldn't you?" Chiyo reasoned.

"Fine. You're right," Izuku coated the pads with telekinetic energy. This might work. He placed two fingers on Kirishima's forehead. Heal quirk fired off. The exchange was again their lunch. Ojiro snapped awake and sighed seeing where he was. Kirishima yawned and got up. This sort of thing must be normal to the teen.

"How are you feeling?" Izuku asked Kirishima.

"Pretty good now, but really hungry," he replied, Izuku laughed at the comment.

"Me too," Ojiro chimed in.

"Head down to the cafeteria and tell them Recovery Girl sent ya," Chiyo stated writing a note.

Not a fuss about Izuku being there. Not a care given about being healed by him. "Not worried about anything?" Izuku asked.

"Nah, just sucks I lost. That Bakugo is tough as nails," Kirishima shrugged taking the note. The two teens exited chatting about their matches.

"See? Not a single problem," Chiyo grinned earning a shameful blush.

"You're right. I guess I'll go back and see how the next match will go," Izuku walked out of the infirmary. The damage Izuku had caused gave the next round about 10 minutes to prep. Walking back to the his seat he went by one of the locker rooms.

Momo was talking to herself and smacked one of the lockers. She was probably frustrated trying to plan the fight out. Izuku opened the door and stood in the door way. "Having problems?" he asked.

Her hair was a bit disheveled and her knuckles were red from hitting the lockers. She was genuinely pissed and angry, but it was all inwardly directed.

"Of course! How the hell can I beat him!" she yelled at Izuku. The green-haired teen took a step in and let the door close.

"You might not want to hear this from me, but you might just want to accept your defeat with grace," Izuku suggested he wasn't prepared for her getting in his face. She grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pushed him into the door.

"Give me your power. I know you can do it. So give it to me," Momo pleaded. Except for the phrasing Izuku couldn't help focus but on how close she was.

"You know I can't do that. That would be cheating and you don't want to be caught cheating do you?" Izuku retorted glaring at her. She searched his eyes and then broke.

Her head was on his shoulder, "I don't know what do, Izuku. There's isn't a scenario I can come up with that I win." He sighed and stroked her head.

"Would you listen to me if I came up with something?" Izuku asked pushing her back and raising up her chin. She nodded. "You can't beat him, but you can make it hell for him," Izuku offered.

She smiled, "Alright what do you have in mind?"

"Well it sort of depends on what you can make," Izuku grinned at her. She gulped wondering what he had planned.

\- Todoroki vs Yaoyorozu -

Momo thought the plan was crazy. It was crazy. It was totally an Izuku plan. She'd have to be fast though as she had maybe one second to react. Momo had to do one thing she had never done before: a full body creation. The problem was time, but if the plan worked; Todoroki himself would provide more than enough time to complete it. Izuku had explained how to make a rather complex liquid crystal suit that used electricity to heat up or cool down. The battery was fairly basic, but the suit would take about 30 seconds to complete before she could wear it. That would at least prevent her from being frozen solid. Once she got past phase 1 she'll consider the phase 2 plans.

She stood opposite to Todoroki. He was emotionless and made no effort to really acknowledge her. He was completely certain that she had no chance. He wasn't far off. But she'll be damned if she goes down easily.

"Begin!"

Momo's first action was to make an incendiary grenade. In the process she of making it she tossed up straight above her with the pin pulled. Then with her other arm she made a flame-retardant blanket and pulled over her head before getting in cased by ice.

The grenade detonated raining hellfire on her. The oily fire melted through the ice at a slow rate. Todoroki watched with a raised eyebrow. A black glove came out of the ice and pulled the hairpin from her hair. A helmet around her formed around her head. She pulled herself out of the ice. Momo was wearing a black skin suit. It had a gray circuitry pattern across the suit. As it heated up the suit turned a dark reddish color and when cool it was pure black.

"Izuku, what the hell!" shouted Mei from her seat, "That things still a prototype!"

Izuku shrugged even if failed it would still work well enough. The green-haired teen had to admit she was sexy as hell wearing that skin suit. It made her curves that much more impressive.

On her upper arms were a thin self sealing membrane. This would allow her to still use her quirk but only from her upper arms. Another ice wave was fast approached her. She leapt out of the way and produced two throwing knifes. Her aim was impeccable but she doubted these would hit home.

Momo aimed for Todoroki's left shoulder. He pulled up an ice wall and stopped the knife. She clicked her tongue, 'Tch'. She built a mini grenade and tossed it at the ice wall. The mini grenade was not a timed explosive but rather a remote one. Another ice wave came out. She quickly made another regular grenade and tossed it at the wave. The blast canceled out the wave.

Another wave followed the last. She leapt out of the way producing two more knives. Ice coalesced around her feet. She switched on the suit and it almost glowed. The ice melted quick enough. She ran looking for another opening. Again she tossed two knives at him. Another wall blocked them.

She clicked a button on her belt and the mini grenade detonated. Todoroki was caught off guard by this. Quickly, he swiped the ice around him with his left hand. Most of it melted around him. She took the opportunity to toss another two knives at him. One went wide, the other hit home. A knife stuck out of Todoroki's shoulder.

Momo hated harming someone this way, but Izuku had convinced her he was tough and it was necessary. Todoroki iced over the wound leaving the knife. He glared at Momo. That was when the whole meta changed. Ice waves were no longer being sent instead the whole arena was covered in a sheet of ice. Momo fired up her suit again prepared for anything.

Apparently, Todoroki was able to form ice and use it to attack. This was mostly due to the fact he could generate it so quickly and could therefore use in like a blunt weapon. The first jab hit her from behind. The ice melted on contact but it still hurt. Another hit was made from the side. He was done sending area of effects at her. He was demonstrating his precision handling of his quirk. If anything this was a better expo for him than her.

She produced two mini grenades and tossed them at him. A wall intercepted the grenades. The grenades stuck to the ice wall. This was more than enough of a distraction. Momo had made a staff and then pole vaulted over the wall.

Momo was the first person to get even remotely close to Todoroki. With staff in hand she made a swing at him. Todoroki caught the staff and boom. The ice frozen all around them. Momo was moving slightly. Slowly the suit was freeing her. She pressed the remote detonation. The ice structure around them rumbled and quaked. The frosty teen shifted and the structure moved. He was adding ice around him which pushed the structure she was encased in away.

Stabbing her staff into the concrete she stopped moving, but the ice kept flowing and pushing. Her core temperature was well above normal at this point. Her vision and vitals were fading. Overheating was much harder for the human body to compensate for.

"End the match! That body suit could kill her!" Mei shouted at Midnight. "Its experimental tech!" Mei shouted. That was about the time when Momo had past out. The tide of ice swept her away and out of the ring.

"Shoto Todoroki wins via KO or Ring out!" Midnight declared. Several members of class 1-A jumped into the field. Mei jumped down as well.

"Todoroki, thaw this now!" Izuku yelled as Todoroki was already in the process of doing. Full Body took over Izuku and he shot off ahead of the class. A single strong strike to the ice shattered the glacier she was in cased in.

"Izuku, what were you thinking?" Mei yelled up to him.

"I told her to use it sparingly. The tech didn't have a way to regulate body heat so it could harm her. Even then she asked for the blueprints," Izuku replied shattering the ice again. He pulled it apart and dropped down through the hole her suit had been making.

"The switch is on the belt! Its a press and slide type," Mei shouted from above. Izuku felt it through the ice and deactivated it. He stopped his fall just above her. He ripped off the helm and felt her skin. She was sweating and breathing shallow.

"Get away!" Izuku shouted and put his arms out. This more than elicited a reaction from all the people surrounding the ice. Two green explosions obliterated the ice. The green-haired boy reached down and scooped her up. "Todoroki, ice vest stat!" Izuku yelled placing her on the arena.

"Get her to Recovery Girl!" Midnight yelled beckoning some stretchers.

Izuku put up his hand, "Wait. We need to stabilize her first!" Todoroki was next to her applying a light sheet of ice to her chest and abdomen. Next Izuku made a cut from her neck to her navel opening the suit. Todoroki and a few of the guys around blushed. Izuku was focused and in the zone so her life was the most important thing.

"We need to get her to Recovery Girl. She needs water a to get out of that skin suit," Midnight suggested.

"I will administer first round treatment to stabilize her and then we can move her. I have recovery girl's quirk," he declared letting the healing quirk flow into his body. Through his pads he activated the quirk. She had lost a great deal of water sweating and was still sweating profusely. Which was a good sign, but heatstroke was not too far off. He had placed two fingers on her face. The exchange was her lipids for water mass.

Her heartbeat slowed down and her breathing resumed a more normal pace. Izuku relaxed. He picked her up nicely and put her on a stretcher. Then he looked to Todoroki, "You're going to feel that." Izuku was pissed and so was his facial expression. He wanted to make it very clear he was sick of Todoroki and his holding back bullshit. But now was not the time or place. Their match would be the proper location.

"Wow, that was quite the scene. Its not every tournament someone almost dies," Present Mic somberly stated.

"She wanted to give it her all. She was enabled to do so and didn't know where the line for her life was drawn. This is precisely why heroes need to be trained," Aizawa chimed in sort of blaming Yaoyorozu's arrogance.

"At least our golden boy, Izuku Midoriya, jumped in immediately to save her!" Present Mic was trying to cheer up the mood.

"Todoroki should have been more careful and not get carried away just because you got hurt," Aizawa chastised.

"Looks like the ring is fully functional again! Time for the first of the finals round! Bakugo versus Uraraka! Who will win? Explosions or Zero Gravity?" Present Mic hyped the match. The crowd cheered chanting Zero Gravity.

"Looks like the crowd wants the underdog to win," Present Mic commented. The two combatants stared at each from across the ring. No words needed to be said. Neither could underestimate the other. Uraraka had earned her right to fight him.


	16. Battle Tournament - Finale

\- Bakugo vs Uraraka -

"Begin!"

Katsuki stood where he was. She would have to come and attack him. This gave him plenty of time to watch her eyes and plan. Something about her eyes put him off. It was pure determination. Her look almost matched the crazed look Izuku could get on him from time to time. It bothered Katsuki how similar these two had become. Uraraka was meek and something changed. Uraraka was scared until Izuku pulled her along. Now he could feel her defiant spirit. Her desire to become something more came through. If he didn't now better he'd say that she was gunning for Symbol of Peace also.

The brunette wasted no time charging at him. She was running, but her hands were low. Her back was bent over enough that her head was in line with her shoulders.

Katsuki had no choice to match her stance and swipe low to high when he countered. Some of the explosion skidded across the ground picking up rubble. The brunette dodged to her right narrowly getting missed by the blast. Another swipe and another dodge. Uraraka was pretty quick for what he knew about her.

"Have you been training with Izuku?" Katsuki asked letting out another blast.

"Yeah, why? Does it show?" Uraraka asked from behind the smokescreen. Katsuki let out another blast and hit nothing. She had already dodged and moved to attack from another angle. This was getting annoying. He hadn't hit her completely either. At most his attacks left her unscathed. It wasn't wearing him down or anything.

The smokescreen was the result of him using a less powerful explosion. Katsuki had the terrible knowledge that the human skull could only withstand so much concussive force before it killed you. An amount of force he was more than capable of exuding.

"You know you're a lot better than I thought you would be! This is a decent match up," Katsuki taunted smirking. It was a classic tactic to get the opponent on edge and them make a mistake. The blonde was not to lucky. No response was had. Instead he reacted too late to an attack and not one he'd think she would choose.

Uraraka came sliding in. Her sliding kick landed right on his ankle on one leg. This threw him for a loop. He was not expecting such a direct attack. His palm pointed down. She rolled a meter to the side just dodging the blast. The concrete came loose and chunks of it were floating...

_Holy shit floating? That.. can't be … good...!_ Katsuki thought looking up. His eyes widened, but then he grinned. "Don't underestimate me!" Katsuki aimed to the sky. Just before he let the explosion rip a block of concrete slammed into his ribs. This knocked him off balance. He looked at her and she had numerous floating projectiles near her. All the floating rubble was loosely above Katsuki. It was tons of material. If she let it loose all at once and it hit him. He'd be out for the count. But those high speed heavy ass projectiles of hers could put a serious dent in his ability to fight her in the future.

Lesser of two evils he supposed. Katsuki resumed his plans. 90% explosion coming up! Another rock careened into his side. That one hurt a lot more. He gritted his teeth and fired the mother of all explosions.

The stadium quaked from the explosion. Katsuki's arm hurt from that, but all the rubble above him was reduced to pebbles. Another rock made its way to him. He blasted it from the air. Her aim was pretty good.

Another rock from behind. This time he sidestepped it. One more from the right. She was strafing or doubling back. Katsuki blasted the thrown rock. He then aimed one palm for strafing and the other for doubling back. The strafing blast hit her. That did not stop two more rock from flying. The smoke was beginning to dissipate.

Uraraka was panting. She had a dozen or so floating rock scattered around the arena. Katsuki had to be careful. Those things hurt and if she hit him it could be bad for him. Granting if Izuku could fly so could he. If she removed the weightlessness at a bad time it could be bad.

Her determined look hadn't diminished at all. Katsuki rocketed at Uraraka. He took the fight to her. He held out his right palm as he got close. She dodged to the right and grabbed him by the wrist. Her quirk activated and she pivoted. It wasn't much extra force but it completely redirected him.

Katsuki was flying to the edge of the ring. He blasted himself upwards and he floated in the air. Uraraka glared at him. "No wonder he does this all the time. It feels pretty damn awesome," Katsuki commented grinning. The blonde blasted upwards gaining height before he dove back down to her. It was proper air travel. Well for a plane, if you were going low from high all that momentum would be conserved.

He was coming right at her. She grinned causing his instincts to go wild. For a moment they took over. The weightlessness was released. Katsuki had to blast the ground hard and in the direction he was going. He had to stop his momentum before he crashed on the ground. The blast that was aimed down tore through the concrete. More ammo for her.

Before he touched the ground a rock careened over to him. It got him in the gut. Another missed him by an few centimeters. The blonde managed to stop his momentum and touch down nicely. Time to really try.

Uraraka was at the end of her rope. She was clearly exhausted. Her power was near depletion and her physical state was near its limit. Still she was focused enough to stay alert.

Katsuki came at her. One palm blasted at her. She dodged. Another palm exploded at her. She couldn't move fast enough. She crossed her arms and took the brunt of the hit. It shot her 5 meters (16ft) across the stage. She was struggling to get up. Katsuki blasted over to her and delivered a devastating low kick to her chest. This made her fly another 2 meters (~7ft). She was almost out of bounds. Again she tried to get up, but to no avail.

"Uraraka, can you continue?" Midnight asked.

"I can continue!" Uraraka pulled herself to her feet. She was wobbly to say the least. Her fiery spirit shown through. She made a combative stance and took a deep breath. She was the true spirit of 'Plus Ultra'. Uraraka charged at Katsuki. She whiffed the fist. Katsuki grimaced this looked bad.

He decided to put her out of mercy. As nicely as he could he put a hand on her gut and pushed her out. The crowd was not happy with him and his choice.

"She proved to be the best match up with him so far. If any hero thinks otherwise I'd like to see you match up against this young hero. His skill is on par with many of you that call yourself pro heroes," Aizawa stated coldly.

The crowd grew silent. "Katsuki Bakugo wins via ring out," Midnight declared. Katsuki didn't hesitate to jump down and offer a hand to Uraraka. She was tired beyond belief, but took the help.

"Thanks, Bakugo," Uraraka replied.

"Tch, you earned it you idoit," Bakugo smiled. He helped her out of the field.

"What an amazing match! I beat everyone's dying to see the next round!" Present Mic said getting a roar from the crowd.

Bakugo and Uraraka crossed paths with Izuku. "Tear him up," Bakugo encouraged patting Izuku on the shoulder.

"I plan on it," Izuku replied.

\- Midoriya vs Todoroki -

The tension between the two teens could be cut with a knife. Midnight gulped wondering just how ridiculous this match was going to be. They both nodded when asked.

"Begin!"

The first massive ice wave came forth and was meet by an equally impressive green explosion. Izuku's arms were charged with green lightning and his bulk had been increased. Full Body and Power Explosion running at once. He was using 75% power blasts. Another ice wave. A counter. Izuku kicked it up to 80%. This was the limit with Full Body any higher and recoil would be noticeable. This time a blast was let out in advance. A ice wave had to be used to just counter it. This may have annoyed Izuku because he let loose three more blasts in near rapid succession.

Within the first 10 seconds of the match Todoroki had used around 40% of his limit just countering. Izuku was one hell of a monster and Todoroki was determined to use his ice and ice only. Another consecutive blast. Izuku was taking steps toward Todoroki. Another two blasts rang out. "Come on Todoroki-san, is that all you have? This so far has been a rather pathetic outing!" Izuku taunted standing his ground at just around the center of the arena.

"You know my promise! I refuse to use his power!" Todoroki replied sending out another ice wave. This blast was bigger than the last few. The white, red-haired teen had to make an ice wall to block the remaining power.

_That stung a bit_, Izuku thought pulling out 88%. "I know better than anyone that whatever you have inside you is yours and yours alone. I don't for a moment think that these powers are another's! The way I use them cannot be replicated," Izuku retorted a bit pissed off.

"So what! I can't give him the pleasure of knowing I'm using his 'gift'," Todoroki rebutted stomping the ground as a glacial wave came out. Izuku 'Tch'. A 100% explosion obliterated the wave and rocked the whole stadium. Todoroki's ice wall was shattered and he was almost pushed out of the ring by the force alone.

This prompted Todoroki to take a few paces towards Izuku. Who did not attack despite the opening. "Will you get over yourself! There are people out there that depend on our strength to protect and defend them! Can you look them in the eyes and tell them that you held back just to spite your father?! Do you think for a damned moment that the helpless civilian gives a damn about your promise?!" Izuku questioned him earning more than a few murmurs from the crowd. Many heroes knew the conservation. It was the talk a mentor or higher ranking hero gave to another: If you can't use all your gifts to save people what kind of hero are you?

Izuku just happened to be the type of hero with a quirk that made him very powerful.

Shoto was a mess in his head space. Midoriya was right and it hurt to think like that. Keeping his promise had nearly killed two people already. But he hated his father so much. The man destroyed his family just for the chase to dethrone All Might. He just couldn't give the satisfaction to his father.

He was at his limit. Frost had set in on his right side and his core temperature was getting dangerously low. The area around him had been getting gradually more and more frozen and cold. Their was an attack he knew that only he could do. Superheated air could cause a massive explosion. He had the chance to make it happen.

"Todoroki! Tell me what kind of hero do you want to be!" Midoriya asked from just past center. A small flashback to a simpler time:

Shoto was sitting on the couch at their home. His mother was beside him. They were watching All Might on the television. The pro hero was saving people and never once did he frown. Shoto wanted to be just like him.

"Shoto, what kind of hero do you want to be?" she asked him smiling. Her words had been so gentle and kind back then. She was one of the few things that made getting up in the morning worth it. Seeing her smiled was worth the grueling training and hellish days.

"I want to be just like All Might," Shoto replied as a kid and punched the air. She laughed and smiled. It was this brief moment he had forgotten. This simple joy. All along he had forgotten what he wanted.

"I want to be the hero that can smile and save people!" Todoroki ignited his left side warming his core immediately. Midoriya had both his arms together and cupped his palm. This was his finishing move. It was an attack of ridiculous power. Todoroki had something just as good though. The white red-haired teen stomped down and ice cascaded out from him. It was covering most of the stage and was about to reach Midoriya. The green-haired teen jumped up and back dodging the ground effect. He then raised his left hand. He produced his maximum heat straight at Midoriya.

At the same time Midoriya yelled, "Nuclear Blast!" Cementoss was quick to say the least. He erected a half dozen concrete walls in between the two. The blast from either side was not dampened significantly by this. When the explosions meet the resulting clash shook the stadium.

The smoke was a thick cloud of steam and concrete dust. A lone figure stood in the arena. Izuku stood relatively unscathed in the center. He did not raise up his fist for victory this time. The damage to the arena was fairly amazing. From the point where Izuku's palm meet to the outside of the ring had been destroyed by the cone of the explosion. Todoroki was laying on the ground face first in a pile of snow. There was a person sized dent in the stadium wall. From the looks of it the force had sent him into the wall of the stadium and then his snow broke his fall. He was breathing lightly and otherwise the concussive force had knocked him unconscious.

"Izuku Midoriya wins via ring out and KO," Midnight declared.

Izuku let go of his quirks. Blood was on his forearms and in the ring. The 100% blast had broken his forearm bones and forced them through the skin. Super regeneration would eventually put them back, but they did look quite grotesque. What really bothered Izuku was that power stockpile had a mere 23% left. That might be enough to go toe-to-toe with Katsuki, but it wouldn't last the match.

Izuku jumped out of the right, "Sorry about the mess." The green-haired teen decided to wait on the grass for his next match. He was laying down. The young man looked over and spotted Endeavor. The number 2 hero gave him a thumbs up. Izuku rolled his eyes and went back to relaxing.

"A small break while the ring is repaired for like the dozenth time today," Present Mic laughed lightly at his own joke.

Present Mic turned to Aizawa in the booth with his mic still on, "Don't you think its an odd choice to make, relaxing like that between the matches?"

"I think Midoriya and Bakugo have had this fight all their lives and now they get to make it official," Aizawa replied smirking.

"It sounds like you're looking forward to this battle between them?" Present Mic attempting to initiate some banter.

"Personally, no. Professionally, very much so. I'd like to see what these two can do against each other," Aizawa commented shrugging.

"In your professional opinion who do you think has the advantage?" Present Mic inquired.

"Bakugo has the edge in skill if everything I've seen about him is true. Midoriya unquestionably is the more powerful of the two. If I had to bet I'd bet on Bakugo. He's had more time to rest and he hasn't been going all out as much as Midoriya has," Aizawa explained.

"Would you say Bakugo has had it easier up to this point?" Present Mic pushed for one more golden comment before Aizawa would seal his lips again.

"I'd say that the three Bakugo's had to fight so far. He had to fight smarter and not harder. I believe in both the first and second round Midoriya wasted a lot of power on people he could have easily taken care of. For Todoroki I'd say they tried, but far too late in Todoroki's case," Aizawa pointed out.

"Well folks that was a great perspective from their teacher Eraserhead!" Present Mic boasted shutting off his mic.

"I wouldn't be surprised if the ring gets completely demolished by them," Present Mic commented stretching in his chair.

\- Bakugo vs Midoriya -

The championship round. The match of the century. Bakugo and Midoriya stood on the opposing sides of the ring. "Don't you dare hold back, Izuku," Bakugo taunted.

"Oh, I won't," Izuku grinned stretching his arms.

"Are both of you ready?" Midnight asked.

"Yeah," Both of them answered in unison.

"Let the championship round begin!" Midnight shouted.

Neither of them moved for nearly 30 seconds. Then they both took off strafing left and firing off explosions. They were both smiling and felt a sort of euphoria set in. Midoriya had turned off the pads on his fingers, the heal quirk, and sparingly used the power stockpile.

Their attack pattern was nearly identical. This was more for show than practically. Bakugo bolted at Midoriya first. They clashed in the center of the arena. The clash of bone on bone blocks echoed on the stage. Neither opponent had a real advantage in terms of power. Bakugo was slightly faster and stronger than base Midoriya.

"I see you turned off Uraraka's quirk," Bakugo pointed out while the two were in a brief stalemate.

"Wouldn't want you flying around and wrecking havoc," Midoriya grinned pushing away. That was went Midoriya body bulked up from the influx of power stockpile. Now he was the faster and stronger of the two, but he lacked something critical still: instinct. It was the one thing that Midoriya could not replicate and for the most part something he possessed very little of. Most of his actions and attacks were born from two places: creativity or from experience. Very rarely did his body just do as he wanted and move beyond his will.

This pure instinctual planning could not be underestimated. Not only could someone use their abilities to their fullest; they could also react at a level most people just couldn't. This is what made Bakugo scary. In terms of raw power he was below Midoriya. But once his instincts kicked in fully it would be another type of match.

Midoriya reengaged first and launched barrages of hits. Bakugo blocked and parried pretty much everything. The hits were heavy and hard. The slug fest was interrupted by a flash bomb and a jump back.

Bakugo blasted the ground breaking up the arena. He had the advantage if he could add some chaos. Unbeknownst to Bakugo, Midoriya had about 6 minutes left and his power would be gone after that. If Midoriya couldn't close out the match by then it would be over for him. His base power was not enough to take down Bakugo. Uraraka's quirk was activated. He placed his hand onto the broken ground and kicked off the ground.

Midoriya had just dodged another explosion leveled at him. The ground floated up into the air. Repeating Uraraka was not the plan using his telekinesis was. Even though it was around 50kg of force it would still be super annoying to have to deal with multiple projectiles and Midoriya.

This was about the time Bakugo's instinct was in full swing. The young protege sidestepped a chunk and blasted another. He then kicked off the ground at a charging Midoriya. Bakugo lead with a devastating overhead kick. It was further sped up with an explosion. Midoriya raised his arms and _felt_ his bones break from the impact. That had hurt. Bakugo twisted his body and leveled a blast at Midoriya's chest.

The green-haired boy pushed Bakugo off propelling him into the air. The blast for his chest missed and deafened him on one side. Bakugo blasted the ground stabilizing his retreat. Just as he landed two chunks of rocks flew at him. Bakugo blasted himself out of the way narrowly dodging the rocks. Many of the rocks from the stadium had been floating above them.

Midoriya's nosebleed and all at once he launched all of rubble at Bakugo. His psychic power was over at that point. Bakugo leveled a massive explosion at the meteor storm of rubble. That was actually a pretty good move idea and name. That stray thought had crossed Midoriya's mind as he rocketed across the stage.

Bakugo was too slow to react for once. A blow landed full throttle into Bakugo's stomach. Two explosion were used to stop his momentum from the hit and exiting stage. Midoriya had 3 minutes left. Bakugo wiped blood from his lips. The punch had hurt him all across his body. Organs hurt and throbbed from the impact force. Then his split second reaction to slow himself down and prevent getting ringed out put his body through a ton of G's. His muscles from shoulder to fingertip hurt.

Midoriya wiped his nose blood off. Green lightning surged and a green explosion crossed the stage. Midoriya was desperate to end the fight. Bakugo took this signal as time to go for the kill.

Bakugo blasted himself out of the way and then sped around Midoriya in a wide arc. Several more explosions were aimed and dodged with precise movements. Bakugo's wide arc tightened cutting closer and increasing his speed. The blonde haired teen was only touching the ground to stabilize the arc at this point. His explosion were pushing him around like a jet.

Bakugo had to eat a blast to get the finishing blow. Midoriya could blast away for several minutes without stopping and eventually they were going to land. If that happened he would be at Midoriya's mercy. Instead he cut sharp and into the next blast. He blasted down and brought his body vertical. The green blast burnt his shirt and his blocking arm. The momentum and speed he had gathered at this point was converted for rotational velocity. He was spinning like a top careening over Midoriya. The wind was whipping around him. Then the call was made, "Howitzer Impact!" It was Bakugo's finishing move.

Midoriya did not have the time to prep a Nuclear Blast or the time to dodge. He had to eat it. The green-haired teen held up both arms and braced for impact. The resulting explosion from Bakugo was like getting hit by a missile. The arena shook and the stage was obliterated.

After the smoke from the explosion cleared it was a bit of a horrific sight to behold. That blast would have been lethal or near fatal at that range. Midoriya was on his back embedded into the concrete of the ring. His arms and chest were _missing_ muscle. His bones were visual and cracked on his arms. If this sight wasn't stunning enough what came next was terrifying. The green-haired boy got _up_ from his human shaped crater. His muscles and tendons were rapidly healing. In the span of 25 seconds he was as good as new.

Bakugo wasn't too surprised. He charged at the juggernaut of a human. That was when he noticed his bulk from early was gone. Midoriya was sluggish to react too. A punch connected with Midoriya's face. He grabbed Bakugo's wrist immediately afterwards. The blonde haired teen could tell his friends vision was failing and now he was running on nothing more than willpower.

Bakugo pulled back and threw his other fist. This was one was caught. Midoriya kicked out one of his feet and then delivered a hard headbutt. This hit dazed Bakugo. Midoriya reeled back from the recoil as well letting go of Bakugo.

The blonde haired teen stumbled back one step before going back on the assault. An open palm was swung and leveled at Midoriya. The reaction was not as expected. Midoriya took one step forward and meet his palm at nearly point-blank range. Both of them fired off an explosion at the same time. Bakugo's overpowered Midoriya's, but the short range concussive force had broken a few bones in Bakugo's hand. A similar injury must have been on Midoriya, but his healing factor would have fixed it in an instant.

The young protege pivoted his leg and connected a kick into Midoriya's gut. Midoriya was knocked to his back and struggled to get up. His pain threshold had been reached and his nervous system was going into shock. Not that he felt it, but that's what was happening.

Bakugo stood above the other teen. He wasn't satisfied with the fight. It should have been way more one sided. Was Midoriya looking down on him? Was Todoroki a more worthy opponent? This couldn't be the extent to the power of Midoriya. "Come on! Get up and fight! Where was all that spunk when you fought Todoroki?!" Bakugo shouted at the downed Midoriya.

Despite Midoriya's best efforts his body was done cooperating. Muscles trembled when he tried to get up. They then promptly failed and he dropped back onto the broken concrete. It was a horrific merciless scene.

Midnight from the side was getting worried, "Midoriya, are you no longer able to fight?" Her voice was half pleading with him and half professional.

The fire within Midoriya would not back down. He glared at her and that was the answer. Though pure willpower he had managed to stand up. He was shaky, but managed to make a stance.

Bakugo was on him before he could react. Another punch connected to Midoriya's face. He went down like a sack of bricks. Still he tried to stand. Bakugo grimaced knowing that anything short of a ring out or knock out would do. Midoriya would have preferred knock out and Bakugo delivered. Another hard punch rattled Midoriya's skull. He hit the concrete hard, but still he stirred. His jaw had been broken from the impact. His regeneration rate was starting to slow down. He was at his absolute limit.

Midoriya half up received another jaw-breaking punch to the face. This time he was down but not out. Once more with a broken jaw and bloody face he tried. Bakugo could barely stomach what he was doing. "Just stay down," Bakugo warned delivering another punch across the other side of Midoriya's face. The green-haired teen just laid on the ring limp. That had done it. He was finally knocked out.

"Katsuki Bakugo wins via KO," Midnight declared grimacing. A stretcher was immediately brought out into the ring.

\- One Particular Viewer -

"Did you see the raw brutality of that kid? Really gets me thinking if this kid rolled the wrong faction," the man that was known best as Shigaraki stated.

"Are you sure about him? He's in the hero course for a reason," the well dressed void being known as Kurogiri warned.

"Oh come now. Clearly he's on the wrong faction and he just needs to be pushed down the right questline. Then he'll be just like us and will have no other home," the insane man replied grinning.

"I'll make the preparations, but you have a visitor. I tasked him with finding you some party members as you would call them," Kurogiri nodded gesturing to the man sitting at a table.

Shigaraki turned to the man who really had a bad fashion sense. "Let's get a few things clear. I'm the kind of guy that likes to run solo during quests, but I suppose if I want to tackle the endgame content I'll need a raid team. Just make sure they're all high level players and not in blues either," Shigaraki explained and threatened.

"You warned me this guys got a hell of a way to speak, but I'm a bit of gamer so I know what you mean," the well dressed man replied.

"Thank you, Giran, you will be well compensated for," Kurogiri replied in lieu of Shigaraki.

"Pleasure doing business with you. You're a great customer after all," Giran replied grinning more than usual.

\- Award Ceremony for 1st years -

"Let's start of by giving a round of applause for our first years!" Midnight prompted getting a whole lot of reaction. After the crowd died down she continued, "And here to present our awards-" At basically the same time as All Might landed in the arena, "For I am here to give out the awards!"

There was a momentary awkwardness and Midnight whispered, "Sorry for talking over you."

All Might cleared his throat, "I am here to present the awards to the winners of the last round." On 3rd place stood Uraraka and Todoroki. On second place was Yaoyorozu as a stand in for Midoriya, which was requested by Midoriya. On the first place pedestal was Bakugo. All Might started with the 3rd place winners.

"Congratulations, Uraraka and Todoroki, both of you came in third place," he offered it to place around their necks. All Might started with Uraraka giving her some words of encouragement, "I look forward to seeing you grow and become so much more in the future." This meant the world to her being accepted. But no one else was the wiser. She was crying as soon as the medal was around her neck. If she could hug him she would have.

Then to Todoroki he said, "Such a heavy burden has been lifted from your heart. I hope to see more of that burden lessened." Todoroki mouthed a 'Thank you' and bowed slightly.

Next was Yaoyorozu. "Momo Yaoyorozu was chosen to be a stand in for Izuku Midoriya to accept this award on his behalf," All Might cleared up first before offering her the medal, "Tell him that the weight of the world is not his burden alone. Many are more than willing to bear that burden if asked." Momo nodded and held the medal close.

All Might stood face to face with Bakugo. The young protege was not happy or willing to cooperate. He wasn't rabid, but he felt undeserving. "I won't take it," Bakugo stated holding out a hand at All Might.

"I understand how you feel, Bakugo, but he made his choices and you have to honor what he left for you," All Might pointed out earning a grunt from the teen.

"He should be the one here not me. I didn't beat him at his best! He was barely 20% against me!" Bakugo lashed back moving away from All Might.

"Sometimes we don't get a choice to fight at full capacity. Accept his lose and your victory you earned it," All Might reasoned. Bakugo grumbled but gave in only accepting the medal in his palm.

"There you have it folks the first part of the UA Sport Festival is over! Can everyone give me a-!" All Might rose up his fist. The stadium in unison called out: 'Plus Ultra!'.


	17. Interns and Heroes

It was the Monday after the crazy Sport Festivals. The class was all back to normal. Except Uraraka she was different. A difference that Izuku couldn't pin down. Her aura was just different.

Kayama and Aizawa had entered into the room together. This meant that a special event was to take place within the class. "Listen up," Aizawa started with, "Today all of you will be picking your hero name and pick an internship to take."

Iida raised his hand. Aizawa pointed at him. "What internships? Isn't that something that the second years would have available to them?"

"President Nezu opened up trial internships with first years. These are kind of a like take your daughter or son to work days. You aren't full heroes yet and this is one of the ways to get your foot in the door," Aizawa explained moving on, "But first Midnight will critique and grade your hero names." He stepped down and let her take the podium.

"Alright, I'm going to pass out a white board. I want all of you think real hard about your name. This is what you'll be called out and about. This is what people are going to call you. This needs to be something that sings to you and yet relays your character," Midnight stated handing out a stack to each person in the front row. As intend every person took one and passed it on.

This had stumped Izuku. He had thought about it a huge amount of time, but hadn't settled on anything. He wanted to convey strength and his quirk. The name should be instantly identifying as Izuku Midoriya. An idea came to mind its was okay but nothing spectacular.

"Who wants to go first?" Midnight asked seeing a few people were done. Mina didn't miss a beat and rose her hand. The purple girl came up to the front of the class to present her idea. 'Alien Queen' elicited a few odd thoughts about old Alien movies. Her 'attacking' face didn't make it any better.

"Alien Queen, that might be too disturbing," Midnight commented earning a pout from Mina. Reluctantly, she went back to her seat.

Kaminari was next to come up to the podium. "Stun gun hero: Chargebolt," Kaminari punctuated his introduction with a smile.

"I like it. Honest and comes out clean. Good work," Midnight nodded to the young man. That seemed to inspire the classroom and a few more rose their hands.

Kirishima was next, "Sturdy Hero: Red Riot!" He fist pump and earned a smile from Midnight.

"Going for a tribute to Red Crimson?" Midnight asked.

"Of course! That's man was my idol. I want to be as manly a hero as him," Kirishima replied.

"Alright, its good," Midnight offered gesturing for him to sit down.

Next up to the podium was Aoyama. 'You Can't Stop Me Twinkling' it was a full sentence. That was the collective thought of the class. Midnight took the pad and crossed out two words, "Better less wordy and still conveys what you want." It read 'Can't Stop Twinkling'.

Izuku was up next. He was nervous to say the least. This would be his new identity for the rest of his life. The green-haired teen stood at the front of the class. He gulped. On his board he had written: 'Multi-quirk Hero: Multi Force'. No one seemed to mind the it. "That's really appropriate considering what you can do," Midnight commented. Izuku smiled and nodded. Multi Force suited him well.

Next up was Jirou. 'Hearing Hero: Earphone Jack' was actually a pretty good name for her. "Its self aware and on the nose. Good job," Midnight beckoned up the next student.

It was Bakugo and Izuku could only imagine the horrible idea Bakugo had come up with. 'King Murder Explosion' read on his white board. Izuku was a part of the few that burst out laughing. "That's too violent for a hero name," Midnight deadpanned. Bakugo mumbled something and went back to his seat.

Tokoyami got up to the podium and unveiled his name: 'Jet-Black Hero: Tsukuyomi'. It was original compared to the rest of the class so far. "I like it. It feeds to your dark natural without being violent or adherent at all," Midnight gave him a thumbs up.

"Thank you," was all Tokoyami had said in reply.

Unknown to Uraraka but she was about to take the cake in the class with her hero name. "Uravity," she said showing off her white board.

"Wow, that's perfect. Quirk and name in one," Midnight commented. Uraraka was freaking out mentally but nodded at the compliment.

Asui was next and her was just cute as hell. 'Rainy Season Hero: Froppy' read on her white board. "That's cute and kid friendly! Well done," Midnight commented absolutely adoring the Froppy name.

Sero was up next and he wasn't so sure about his name. "Taping Hero: Cellophane," Sero said presenting his name.

"Its honest and uses a commonly understood word to make you instantly recognizable," Midnight offered. Sero pumped his fist knowing he had hit a home run.

Ojiro was up next. "Martials Arts Hero: Tailman. Couldn't think of anything else, but it fits," Ojiro commented shrugging.

"Sometimes the best hero names are like this. They're instantly recognizable as you. Even if they sound a bit stupid now its how you build them up that matters," Midnight explained before finishing the thought, "So I'd say yours is pretty good."

Tenya walked up to the podium. Izuku could tell the man hadn't picked a hero name yet. "Tenya," the tall teen said with an absolutely stern look on his face. Something was off about Iida. Izuku looked at his eye and saw a darkness. A horrible event must have happened. As stealthy as Izuku could he pulled out his phone.

"Are you sure you want to be known up your name? Its unusual but some have done it," Midnight asked a bit concerned.

"For now it'll do," Iida replied getting up from the podium. Izuku found it. Stain had been gaining a huge fanbase and his crimes weren't completely random either. After a run in with the league its believed that they're connected. Izuku knew better they weren't. What the league stands for and what Stain believes are too far from one another. Sato was up at the front of the class. 'Sweets Hero: Sugarman' which was completely appropriate.

Izuku went back to his phone. He missed what Midnight had to say, but spotted some interesting news. A report claimed that Stain was in Hosu. This was where the Ingenium Hero Agency was. Based on Iida's dark look there must be a connection. Izuku knew he had to ask Iida about it later.

'Tentacle Hero: Tentacole," Shoji presented. _Its that like really close to a Pokemon from the old school Pokemon games? _Izuku thought trying to remember the 1000+ Pokemon that were apart of that mega series.

Izuku tapped Katsuki on the back. "Come up with anything better?" Izuku whispered. The green-haired teen zoned out the presentations to help out a friend.

Katsuki turned slightly and whispered back, "I keep writing down Lord Explosion or Detonation King. Stuff like that."

"What about Ground Zero? I like the sound of it and its still explosion themed," Izuku offered. Katsuki grinned. It was just like Izuku to come up with an awesome sounding name and give himself a mediocre one.

"Sure, sounds good enough for me," Katsuki replied erasing his previous idea and putting down Ground Zero.

Todoroki stood at the front of the class. 'Black Magus' was the name he came up with. "So what's the inspiration for this?" Midnight asked hoping it wasn't a race thing.

"The final fantasy series had a job in it called Black Mage. They could cast Fire, Water, Ice and Lightning. I've got three of those, unless Fire can somehow do Lightning," Todoroki smirked actually trying to make a joke.

"That's really old school but they're still popular games so as long as your good with it so am I," Midnight offered.

"I am. I think is more friendly than a lot of my alternatives," Todoroki commented before heading back to his seat. Izuku had missed Koda and Mineta chatting with Katsuki and looking at his phone.

Yaoyorozu was up next. "Everything Hero: Creati," Momo stated. It wasn't the most inspiring or creative name, but it was cute.

"Its kind of cute and on the nose. If you're okay with it so I am," Midnight nodded to Momo.

Izuku couldn't help but chime in, "What about '3D Printcess'?" It wasn't a bad name if not too on the nose. It was also kind of whimsical and regal. Regal was probably the first thought a person would have knowing anything about Momo.

"That's not bad if not too on the nose. It does have a certain ring to it though," Midnight gave her two cents.

"Can I still change it? But I don't know how much I like it," Momo was torn.

Kaminari spoke up, "Just imagine a villain botching that and calling you 3D Princess. I don't think that's a bad miss say at all."

"Yeah, I'd love making fun of bad guys for calling me Princess instead of Printcess. Its fun banter and you could catch them off guard with it," Mina added taking a surprisingly well thought out stance.

"That could be your running joke when you defeat a villain: 'Its Printcess not princess, punk!'" Kirishima imitating a tough guy voice for the quote. Momo mouthed the word 'Punk' as if she'd ever actually say that.

"You don't have to choose now. You have until the end of the day. That way we can submit them along with the internship paperwork," Midnight offered. Momo nodded and got off the podium to think it over.

That just left Mina, Katsuki and Hagakure to declare their hero name. Hagakure went up to the podium. "Stealth Hero: Invisigirl. I liked the nickname from battle training so much I just kept it," Hagakure giggled and made a cute exaggerated movement. Which was normal for her since she didn't have facial expressions. Or at least visible ones.

"Battles are some times the best placing to get an insight on your hero name," Midnight stated giving her a thumbs up.

Mina went back up for the second time. "Pinky," Mina said. It was short and sweet. It also worked really well with her skin color.

"Much better. That's a lot more friendly and inviting. That works with your personality too," Midnight commented earning a cheer from Mina.

Katsuki got up next. The whole class was dreading whatever corny terrible thing Bakugo could think of. 'Ground Zero' "A friend thought it was a good name so I took it," Katsuki gloated and thanked in his own twisted way.

"Ground Zero inspires what your about so that friend of yours was spot on. Good work everyone! Not a single complete reject unlike the last years group," Midnight commented giving the stage back to Aizawa.

"Now let's go over the internship results," Aizawa tapped a button and a screen popped up on the board. The class collectively dropped their jaws. "As you can see first and second place get the majority of all internship applications," Aizawa pointed out.

"Holy shit, Midoriya got 60% of all the internships!" Kaminari blurted out getting an eyebrow twitch from Aizawa.

"Yes, some years extraordinary individuals stand out so much they take the world by storm. This is what it looks like. Now most if not all of you if I'm not mistaken have at least 1 internship opportunity. The rest of this week you'll all be at your respective agencies instead of coming to class," Aizawa explained handing a stack of papers to Midnight. She handed out to each student the list of Agencies interested in them and their respective numbers. "I expect each one of you to think hard about which agencies suit you best. Some like to pick ones that play to their strengths. Others pick ones that make up for your weaknesses. Even if it doesn't work out you all with gain valuable insight about yourselves and about the world," Aizawa ended his speech on that note. The lunch bell rang out. The rest of day would be studying, but Izuku had an important conversation to have. Before Iida could get too far ahead of the class Izuku got his attention. "Iida-san, a moment of your time, please," Izuku asked before he got out the door.

"Sure, we have time," Iida replied no smile or emotions. They waited for the classroom to empty.

"Iida I'm concerned as hell about you," Izuku lead with hoping to gauge Iida's reaction.

The green-haired teen knew it was back when Iida was cold, "For what reason? Nothing is amiss."

"There I can see it. Your darkness is going to consume you," Izuku pointed out.

"What darkness? If you're taking about the outcome with the Sport Festival and internships it was to be expected going against Bakugo-san round 1," Iida reasoned trying to deflect.

"I'm taking about Stain in Hosu and the recent silence from the Ingenium Hero Agency," Izuku had struck a cord.

Iida glared and his tone hostile, "Nothing happened except for Stain picking off the unworthy heroes." There was venom is his voice. It was unlike Iida to be like this. The taller teen was done with the conversation and went to leave.

Izuku grabbed his arm stopping him, "Promise me that you wouldn't do anything stupid. That guy is no joke and you can't take him. If your brother is involved then it would be best for you to keep your distance and not engage."

"You know nothing, Midoriya," Iida broke free from the hold and walked off. Izuku sighed. He would need to get the number for the Ingenium Hero Agency. He walked towards the lunchroom kind of pissed off. An arm caught him as he was heading out to the lunch area. Thankfully, the UA uniform had long sleeves.

It was Todoroki. Izuku wasn't in the mood for the bull shit that was the Todoroki family drama. "What do you want?" Izuku snarled.

"I take it that didn't go well," Todoroki commented.

"Course not! Iida's confident he can do something beyond his station. He's going to get himself killed if he goes where I think he's going," Izuku replied his voice slightly raised.

Even though Todoroki wanted to talk about something else this sounded more pressing, "What's going on?"

"Stain is in Hosu. I believe Ingenium was involved and Iida is going to fight Stain. Which is going to get the bastard killed," Izuku stated bearing no further evidence.

"Hmm, maybe I'll keep an eye on him," Todoroki replied earning an raised eyebrow from Izuku. "What? I care too. I want to redeem myself," Todoroki admitted.

Izuku sighed, "Sorry. He just rubbed me the wrong way. What did you want to talk about since you pulled me aside."

"Are you going to accept Endeavor's quirk?" Todoroki deadpanned in the most serious tone.

Izuku was taken back with how forward Todoroki was being, "I don't know. He's on my list so I was thinking about going to his agency for the internship. Maybe if I like him I'll accept, but right now I'm on the fence about it."

"Good. You probably won't he's not the best guy," Todoroki warned.

"I figured that much from your backstory but I want to see him as a hero and not as a father," Izuku stated earning a nod from Todoroki. "Come on let's get to lunch. I'd hate to be hungry for the rest of the day," Izuku commented smiling. Todoroki smirked and followed.

After school the sun was setting. Ochako rushed after Midoriya her powers had some tuning that needed done. Ochako had received One For All just after the Sport Festival and had the whole weekend to play around with it. And by play she meant breaking bones like they were toothpicks.

"Midoriya, do you have some time!" She called out to the green-haired teen outside of UA. Ochako ran to catch up to him.

"What's up Uraraka-san?" Midoriya asked spotting her splinted finger. "What happened?" Midoriya pointed at her finger.

"That's what I want help with. Can we go somewhere private?" Ochako asked pleading with her eyes.

"Sure, I'll give All Mi-," Midoriya started saying. "No!" Ochako shouted.

"Okay, I'll call Principal Nezu then," Midoriya offered instead. Ochako sighed relieved she wouldn't have to face All Might and feel like a failure with his power.

"Yeah, its me, Midoriya,..." Midoriya sat around as the bear mouse being talked his ear off. "I was hoping to get you to open one of the gyms to me for personal use," Midoriya stated rolling his eyes when the Principal started monologuing.

"Is that a yes or no? You started to run in circle there. Getting a bit senile?" Midoriya replied Ochako was shocked he was being so frank with the principal.

The young man ended the call. "He'll meet us at Gym Omega. Its a unused gym and could do with some repair work so if we happen to break anything that could give him reason enough to repair it," Midoriya explained walking off. The brunette followed him.

"Tell me how you broke your finger," Midoriya requested glancing over to Ochako.

She bit her bottom lip, "I used One For All and its way stronger than I thought."

Midoriya's finger lit up. He touched her neck earning a blush from her. Then the pain in her finger was gone. Ochako took off the splint and she flexed her fingers. "I'll help you get some control over it, but your body can only take so much abuse," Midoriya offered smiling at her. She nodded and weakly thanked him.

Principal Nezu was in fact waiting for them. "If you weren't such an incredible student I'd send you to detention for calling me Senile! I see that Uraraka is with you. I can deduce that this request was made because of One For All. Is that correct?" Nezu asked standing on a crate so he was almost there height.

"Yup, that's correct," Midoriya replied.

"What you can't just tell him that?!" Ochako shouted in horror.

"Don't fret too much young lady. I'm quite aware of your quirk and your unique condition," Nezu waved calming down Ochako. "Now I'm going to get going and do some paperwork. No one will be the wiser how these keys got here," he said dropping a key ring to the ground.

"Thank you," Midoriya said snatching up the key ring, "I'll make sure these never left your office." The key had the Greek symbol for Omega on it. The doors to the gym screeched as the metal ground on metal. They weren't balanced properly. He flicked the switch and about 40% of the lights turned on. Nezu was already gone by this point.

"Not the best place, but it'll do," Ochako commented taking off her coat and shirt.

"What are you doing?!" Midoriya shouted looking back to see Ochako in her bra.

She blushed but it was the only way. "If I don't I'll destroy my uniform and have to explain why its in such bad shape," Ochako replied steeling her nerves.

Midoriya did the same and shed his coat and shirt. His body was sculpted as much if not more than the rest of his peers. She was doing pretty good for herself too. No longer was she smooth and had no bulk. She had a 6 pack to match his and visible muscles on her arms and legs. She wasn't overly muscular but definitely was the most bulky of the girls now.

"Its interesting that my quirk considered your Power Stockpile a new quirk. It just gave me another stack of it. This means that your version is either significantly stronger than All Might's or there's something different about it. But whatever activate it and fire it off at me," Midoriya beckoned.

The fact Midoriya now had a duplicate Power Stockpile was a bit concerning, but attacking him with that power was more worrying. With just a finger at 100% it produced a ton of force. A punch could really do some damage. But she complied. The power coursed into her arm as she made a fist. Just as All Might had instructed 'From the depths of your heart, squeeze your butt cheeks, and yell: Smash!'

The force of the punch was crazy. The wind pressure alone crossed the gym and slammed into Midoriya. The green-haired teen had bulked up with Full Body x2. He had dug his feet into the ground and put up his arms. He was pushed back some 20 meters (65.6ft) and his arms had been broken.

"Holy crap. That's a lot of force," Midoriya pointed out as his regeneration mended his arms. Ochako's right arm was out for the count. Not only did it break every bone, but the muscles were just torn to hell. Her arm was to her side limp.

"Now do your left arm. I'm going to counter it," Midoriya requested. _Counter that?!_ Ochako screamed in her head. She kind of wanted to see him try. She rose up her left arm, power coursed, and again SMASH!

Midoriya rose up his right hand and let loose an ultra explosion. It looked like having two power stockpiles allowed him to arrange them how he wanted to when they were interfacing with other quirks. In the case of explosion it looked like he could apply the buff 4 times instead of the 2. This was a 46.4% net in power. The massive explosion didn't overtake the 100% punch but it dampened it significantly. The gust of wind was like that of a 70km/hr (43mph) burst of wind. Not damaging but a bit cold.

Another arm was hurting and burning from the pain. Two punches wasn't enough to defeat anyone. The fact Midoriya showed no damage from the recoil of the super explosion was more than enough of an indicator of the difference in power between them. Midoriya strode over to her and his fingers lit up. Her bones snapped into place and the muscles mended. She sighed in relief.

"We could keep this going forever. That power stockpile you have doesn't seem to get dented at all. Healing like that eats a lot of power and so far I haven't even scraped the tip of iceberg. First what are you doing when you make the attack?" Midoriya explained taking a few steps around her to examine her build.

"I'm doing just as All Might recommended. 'From the bottom of your heart, squeeze your butt cheeks, and yell: SMASH!'," Ochako quoted as he finished his examination. Midoriya just face palmed.

"Just wipe that from your mind. You clearly can't use a 100% of the power. So let's see if you can set it lower and use that. Try to imagine 5% power," Midoriya instructed bulking up his body.

The power of One For All was nearly immeasurable. So just asking to do 5% didn't mean much. Instead she focused on what she understood. She knew what 100% in a limb felt like. She powered up her arm and then tried to pull on the reins so to speak. The power gradually lessened as she got used to the idea of reducing it. Then she lowered it too quickly and the power left her arm. Again she tried, but slowed down even more. Just practicing with the power gave her a decent insight on the depth of it. She wasn't using the stockpile itself, but rather the overflow of its regeneration rate.

Eventually after a minute or two of trying to nail 5% she got it stable in one arm. "Punch me with it," Midoriya instructed holding out his hand. Ochako complied striking with the 5% power. The recoil of making contact with him was the only pain she felt and even that was minuscule. The flow was gone after that.

"That's about a 2.5 times increase. That's scary to think about. Full power is 50 times. That means I wouldn't stop increasing your physical prowess. Don't go for much more bulk though try to make yourself more lean and increase muscle density," Midoriya provided her with good insight.

"Now again. I want you to hit me with the 5% without thinking about it and I don't want to see it deactivate after you make the strike. You'll have to keep it going," Midoriya instructed holding up both his hands, "And swap arms. Maybe toss in a few kicks if you can managed."

That night Ochako had more or less mastered using 5% of her power. It was tough to switch on the fly from limb to limb, but she managed. Midoriya told her she might want to work on a Full Body form that would make it easier to move around. He was right of course and she had been trying but hold 5% across the whole body was hard. She just couldn't concentrate long enough to hold the form at all.

They also tested out Midoriya's new stockpile. The first discovery was that it had a multiplicative increase if the double empowered explosion was anything to go by. This resulted in a fairly crazy boost to his telekinesis and his Full Body form. The increase according to Midoriya was about 82% for his Full Body. The buff was about enough to outpace her strength at 5%, but that was mostly due to him being way stronger in his base form than her.

* * *

**Drakonite**:

Let's have a serious talk about One For All and the way I imagine it. This imagining of it will be the way I'm going to use it: For a moment let's assume that the total mass of power is 1,000,000 units. This is fake number and those units don't represent any real type of force/power. Now One For All regenerates at a massive rate, high enough that using a '100%' doesn't put a noticeable dent on the power. Let's for a moment assume this rate is 100% over the course of 10 seconds. 10% per second. If there is no dent in power using it at 100% than in my mind that means they are only using the 10% of the regeneration rate as the 100%. This means a 100,000 units of power could be used and not even scratch the body of the power. This is why and how All Might can go beyond 100%. In truth I think 1000% is what is available. (500 times increase in physical stats. No wonder All Might was nearly invulnerable in his prime!)

Firing a 1000% attack would be insane! What's more insane is that in 10 seconds another one would be available again!

What that means is once she hits 100% she'll start more into the realm of the 1000%. This will be when the the other qualities of One For All become known to her (If you're caught up with the manga you know what I'm talking about). If I get to this point before the manga does I'll just fill in the gaps with none canon things (this is a long way from now). As for training it I have a plan and thought I'm going to run with that I think would make sense.

The 100% form that Izuku has in canon I think is the result of tapping into the surface of the body of the main power.


	18. Internship's - Part 1

\- Next Day In Endeavor's Office -

"I'm disappointed that my son didn't accept my offer, but I'll take the next Symbol of Peace. You have a lot headway to make. So I'll ask this first: What is the most important quality for a hero to have?" Endeavor said behind his desk. Izuku was wearing an upgraded version of his hero outfit. It had the thin self-sealing membranes on the triceps for Momo's quirk. The metal plating was less bulky and formed better. The rubber lining was thinner and significantly upgraded. It was heat resistance up to 2700° C (4892° F) due to being mostly made of carbon crystals. It was also more impact resistant. The only downside was that it was nearly superconductive. Making electric foes more hassle than before. There was a small touch screen on his right arm that worked like a smart phone.

"Power. All the rest can be taught and perfected. Power is from birth," Izuku replied.

"That is correct! Its the one quality you can't improve much and is the first limit all heroes face. A limit you don't possess," Endeavor pointed out standing up. The number 2 hero was wearing most of his hero outfit. His gloves were off and his hair was normal. Izuku was a bit leery of his gloves being off, but canned the worry.

"What's first on the menu?" Multi Force asked smirking.

"Crime is a bit low at this time of day and a few patrols are already out. So paperwork. The most boring grueling part of being a hero, but necessary. I'll show you down to the offices and get you started," Endeavor got up and strode past Midoriya.

"I suppose paperwork makes going on patrol more exciting," Izuku commented following Endeavor.

Endeavor laughed at the joke, "You couldn't be more right. You'll get your chance later. We'll take the night patrol and see if we can't bag a few villains."

"Just you and me?" Multi Force asked looking up at Endeavor as they rode the elevator down.

"With my experience and your power we shouldn't need anyone else to assist us," Endeavor replied crossing his arms. They had about 8 floors to go before they got to the Reports department of the Endeavor Agency Tower. "Did you make a decision regarding my offer?" Endeavor asked looking down at Izuku.

"I wanted to see what kind of hero you were before I accepted your quirk," Multi Force replied also crossing his arms.

"Fair and a bit insulting if I have to admit. I'm number 2 for a reason," Endeavor pointed out.

"Yes, you have the most impressive arrest rate of all heroes. But you're not the friendliest guy to the public," Izuku rebutted smirking.

"Honesty. I like that. You speak your mind around those you respect. I don't respect most people so I'm just honest to everyone," Endeavor justified.

Endeavor had some depth of character but words were nothing like actions. While he could probably get out Endeavor's ideology through words. It would be more important to see that ideology in action. The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Endeavor lend the way to a few spare desks. "For the rest of your stay this is your desk. The sleeping quarters if you choose to rest here are 4 floors down," Endeavor took a piece of paper and wrote down a username and password. Multi Force sat down at the office desk and inspected the desk.

The office space was fully decked out. Three monitors, a top of the line keyboard, a multi-button mouse, a studio quality headset with mic, a decent printer/scanner, garbage can, and a ton of desk space. The chair to boot was comfortable. Multi Force tapped the mouse waking up the computer. It had a log on screen on the center menu.

Izuku took the note from Endeavor and logged in. He then promptly used a small explosion to burn the note. His memory was impeccable after all. "Ballsy, but your quirk probably allows some memory storage right?" Endeavor asked. The number 2 hero was quite curious about Izuku's quirk.

"I had good memory before. But now with Yaoyorozu's quirk my memory is basically photographic. Side effect to the whole I can make almost anything I can imagine," Izuku answered browsing the computer seeing a few custom programs.

"Alright, so this is the police database. We use it mostly to search for known quirk users and give our guys out on the field a better idea of what they're up against. This application," Endeavor pointed to 'CommLinkEND', "Is the dispatcher for everyone on my team. Open it up and take a look."

Multi Force did just that and opened the Police Database. He dropped the Police Database to his right screen and an internet browser to the right screen. The dispatcher system booting up after a minute or two.

"So as you can see this is everyone that's out on patrol," Endeavor pointed out. The screen was broken into several tracking systems. The folks on patrol had trackers on them and their current route was tracked and displayed on a map. Crime hotspot areas were visible on the map as well. The system had a way to track open lines and which ones were requesting aid. The aid came in a few forms: Backup, Inquiry, and Capture. Backup was straight forward. There was a list of heroes still at the building and their quirks/specialties. There was another tab for the on deploy heroes and expected ETA's if you selected a main hero and the other as backup.

It was an intricate system that probably saved lives everyday. It also significantly increased the efficiency of the agency. A ping came in for Inquiry. This was just a request for information from either the internet or from the police db. "Put on the headset and connect. State who you are and ask for the Inquiry," Endeavor instructed.

Izuku placed the headset on and double clicked the ping. "Afternoon, this is Multi Force, what's your request?" Multi Force said in the most natural and calm voice.

"_You must be the new guy Endeavor told us about this morning! Welcome to the Endeavor Agency! But down to business. I've got a potential wanted criminal. Sending you the picture now,_" the voice said just as a picture was pulled up by the program. Within the CommLinkEND program was the option to connect to the DB and run images, names, and voice recordings. The options were very clear cut and Izuku clicked the 'Cross Reference with Police DB' option. "Processing your request just waiting for an outcome," Multi Force stated.

"_Roger that,_" the voice replied. The image came up with a 89% match to a known criminal still at large. His quirk, strengths, and weaknesses were outlined along with a rank for how dangerous they were.

"Got an 89% match. Perp has the quirk called 'Bone Lance'. He's good at long ranged attacks, but struggles at close range. His threat level is a B-. Do you want me to arrange for backup?" Multi Force asked looking at who was nearby and not already engaging anyone.

"_Sure, I'll take one more to back me up. I doubt I'll need, but just in case,_" the voice replied. Izuku placed him as the main hero and went to the on patrol heroes. Clicking on a few of them gave him a cooperation level and synergy grade. He found one that was close-ish and had good markers with the main hero.

"Sending Lush Lender your way. He's got 15 minutes until he'll be close enough. I'll relay the perp to him and then I'll leave the rest to you," Multi Force explained completely the backup request on the program.

"_Alright, thanks. Doing pretty good for your first day,_" the voice complimented before resolving the request.

"Well done. You're a natural. You're going to want to open the ReportBuilder program and make a report on the aid you provided and what info you accessed. Be thorough the police expects us to be their first responders and its our duty to provide the most accurate account of events of what we did. The police make the actual arrests, but that's not to say we can't detain a criminal. We just can't read them their rights and unless merited we have to refrain from excessive force. If you get a Capture ping you'll have to patch into the police and request a unit to arrest the criminal. Give the street addresses and any additional details to help them out," Endeavor instructed.

"What are some kind of additional details I should look out for?" Multi Force inquired opening and typing into the ReportBuilder.

"Quirk damage to the buildings, fire, number of injured, number of criminals, active fight scenes, those sort of things," Endeavor replied.

"I think I've got it covered for now," Multi Force stated.

"I'll leave you to it and check up on you in an hour. You already had your lunch, but if you need a break just remember to lock your computer. I don't expect you to work the whole time, but don't slack off too much either. A good work ethic and communication is important to the guys on the ground," Endeavor stated walking away from the teen.

This was easy stuff for Izuku.

\- Later that day -

Night had settled in. Endeavor for the fourth time today had visited Izuku. It wasn't annoying, but Endeavor had a way of making pointed small talk. First he wanted to chat about Todoroki and the school. It was a pleasant short conversation. Izuku more or less called Shoto a dick and emotionally unavailable. That one was Endeavor's fault and he owned up to it. Otherwise the school was good, but random some times. Which was apparently normal for hero academies as Endeavor explained. He guessed being a hero was hectic and the schooling should be too.

The second time Endeavor visited he was just too damn curious about Izuku's quirk. It was hard to explain due to the fact his quirk space was not only 3D, but kind of like in a suspended space. He could also add in modifiers like toggle, switches, and logical statements. For any quirk it was robust and versatile enough that nothing could really break it down much. Except extreme passive type quirks would be a problem.

The third time Endeavor just wanted to chat. It was a political conversation about the state of heroes and the world. Izuku had adopted the All Might stance: heroes should be heroic for the sake of saving and defending others. Wealth is secondary but not necessary. Family was also a lost relic to the heroes of now. A price Izuku would not be willing to bend for. He even stumped Endeavor with a quote he had heard: 'What kind of hero are we if we are only heroes? Are we nothing? Could we be happy knowing no one is there at home waiting for us? Would we not be empty if you came home to nothing?' Endeavor couldn't rightly answer any of those questions.

"Pack it up, Multi Force, its our turn," Endeavor declared grinning. Multi Force locked his computer and got up.

"Alright after a long day of typing and talking. Getting a chance to stretch my legs is great. Seeing the number 2 hero in action will be even better," Multi Force did in fact start stretching. He quickly reapplied his body armor. Midoriya had found that being in plated armor for any extended period of time was exhausting. Since most of his suit was disassemblable, so it made sense to take apart what he didn't need.

Endeavor and Multi Force had already made way to the elevator. Endeavor figured it was a good time for the debrief, "That's the spirit. We're going to go through the most dangerous area nearby. Its known gang territory but unless they pick a few with us or are doing anything illegal we have to leave them alone. For the most part I'll do the fighting. Technically, you can't fight unless I authorize you, but I'll catch some flak for doing that."

That was good to know. "I know I need my provisional license before I can really do anything," Multi Force commented.

"That's not entirely true. You can still talk to people, rescue cats from trees, help old ladies, that kind of stuff," Endeavor deadpanned. Multi Force couldn't hold it and burst out laughing.

"So I'm a good Samaritan, basically. Good to know," Multi Force commented earning a raised eyebrow from Endeavor.

"That's one way to put it," Endeavor replied. The elevator dinged when it reached the bottom. The two of them strode out onto the streets. After an hour of walking, they got to the trouble neighborhood. Endeavor was right. This place was rundown and had hoodlums all over. Various kinds of quirk users were all over the place. They were all mutant type. Those that got hit with hate speech and racism more than any other kind of quirk user. They formed gangs for unity and belonging more than any other reason.

"Hey you heroes we don't want your kind around here!" one of them shouted. Endeavor was looking mad. Multi Force had one opportunity to defuse this.

"Evening citizen! Don't mind us we're just making sure this area is safe and secure," Multi Force replied waving at them.

"Fuck you! We don't need your help!" another person spoke up.

Multi Force was much more stern this time, "Then tell me who protects you from the League of Villains? Who protected the civilians from the Fires of Prometheus? The Fist of Death? The Dancing of Dominus?"

They were silent after that. Each of the those events were from legendary villains. They set the world back so many times. Their paths of terror were complete indiscriminate violence. If not for the legendary heroes of past they would could have been reduced to ash.

They moved on. It was another hour before they saw what could be potential action. A robber had just tore apart a convenience store. "I'll handle the perp. You see if anyone needs medical attention," Endeavor stated sprint off after the theft. For a large hero he was pretty fast. Not All Might or Iida fast but a cut above the norm.

Multi Force ran into the shop and felt where everyone was. "Fear not for I am here. Is anyone injured!?" Multi Force shouted getting the attention of everyone.

"He stabbed two people and ran off with our jewelry and cash!" one man complained.

"Endeavor is on the thief. I'm here to prevent any deaths," Multi Force took a moment to feel for any liquid flowing out of people. Thanks to that second power stockpile his telekinesis had been greatly enhanced. It was now around 9 times potency and could apply 150kg of force. It also beefed up the sensory data, accuracy and range. The clerk had been stabbed into the chest above the heart. It wasn't a fatal wound. A woman was laying on her side wheezing. She had been stabbed in the right lung. Her other lung wasn't compensating enough. She was going to die if first aid was not applied.

Multi Force knelt beside the woman. She checked for her pulse first. It was weak. "Are you still awake, ma'am?" Multi Force asked getting a weak 'Yes'. "Nod if you have eaten dinner," Multi Force requested. She nodded weakly. His right arm lit up a light green. He placed two fingers on her forehead.

Green light encompassed her and the wound healed in an instant. She was still weak from blood lose, but she was stable. Multi Force tapped into the Comm system requesting a Capture. A fizzle and crackling before the operator came in over his earbud.

"_This is Ripcord. What services do you require?_" the operator asked.

"This is Multi Force. I've got two victim downs from single knife wounds. Both of them should be stable when emergency services arrive but they will still need blood infusions to be fully stable," Multi Force stated jumping the counter.

"Sir, did you eat dinner recently?" he asked the man.

"I had my lunch break 2 hours ago," the clerk replied.

"Good enough," Multi Force's arm lit up. He touched the clerk's forehead. The man sighed in relief as his pain subsided.

"_Alright, emergency services are on their way. What about the perp?_" Ripcord asked over the line.

"You'll have to asked Endeavor. He was in hot pursuit of the thief," Multi Force replied vaulting the counter again. He picked up the woman and brought her outside. He made sure to keep her legs elevated so her heart and brain would have more blood to work with.

"You're the intern right?" Ripcord asked getting a 'Yeah' from Multi Force, "I can have back up routed to you. You could get out there and back up Endeavor."

"While that's an enticing offer I'll decline. I'm supposed to stay away from fighting right? So let's not chance it," Multi Force replied. That was when he spotted two more people looking at him funny. "On second though. Send that back up anyway. I might have a fight coming at me," Multi Force requested.

"_Roger that. Good luck,_" Ripcord stated as Multi Force ended the link. The young man went back inside and found someone of a strong build.

"Sir, I hate to ask this of you, but could you carry her while I take care of some business?" Multi Force smiled at the man.

"Ah, sure, I'd be happy to help," the oxen man replied.

"Good. Keep her legs elevated. She lost a lot of blood and we don't need any permanent brain damage," Multi Force gently handed off the woman.

The two guys from earlier came into the shop armed with a large knife and a gun. "Sirs, please step out of the shop or I'll have to remove you!" Multi Force shouted.

The guy with the knife backed down, but the gunman didn't seem deterred. He was going to regret that choice. The gunman aimed at Multi Force. A max empowered telekinetic barrier was put up right outside the barrel. It was cylinder thicker than the barrel and about 10 inches long. If the bullet could eat through 150kg of force pushing against it for 10 inches it more than earned the right to hit.

The man then emptied his clip. The psychic barrier basically killed the velocity of the bullets. By the time they had exited the barrier most of the kinetic energy had been eliminated. A dozen bullets clattered on the floor. Blood dripped from his nose.

"Nice try. But I'm in my own league. After all I have to be if I'm going to be the next Symbol of Peace," Multi Force wiped the blood from his nose and pushed them out of the store with psychic force. He followed them outside.

The knife wielder ran at him. Multi Force dodged the stab and only blocked his blade from that point. He placed five fingers on the other guy and got him into the air. The other assailant relentlessly attacked Multi Force. With one precise movement he grabbed the knife wielder wrist and got five more fingers on him. He too floated away.

Endeavor came back perp in hand. The man had a steel pole wrapped around him. "Nice work, Multi Force. No violence and they're apprehended. When the unis get down here I'll take the credit just so you don't have to get yelled at," Endeavor stated dropping the thief in front of Izuku.

"Just this one time Endeavor. I'd hate for you to get all the credit," Multi Force replied crossing his arms.

"I saved you the police reports and the headache of claiming it was in self defense," Endeavor retorted. Multi Force rolled his eyes.

"I'm going to head back then while you sort this out. I'm not really needed after all," Multi Force said walking away.

"This was the end of your shift too," Endeavor pointed out. Midoriya waved off Endeavor. Todoroki was a bit right he was a bit of a dick, but it was to be expected if Shoto was any indication. That was the end of day one for Izuku.

\- Uraraka's Internship – Same Day -

All Might had suggested that she go and try to get an internship with his previous mentor. He was pretty nervous about the whole ordeal which worried Ochako to no end. Her imagination of All Might's mentor was that of a stoic bad ass.

The sun was about gone from the horizon. Ochako didn't think it would take several hours just to find this place. It wasn't in middle of nowhere. The directions just sucked. She found herself looking at a crummy apartment.

Ochako knocked on the door. She was carrying her hero briefcase which if she had to think about needed a huge change. Her old costume just isn't practical anymore for One For All. "Hello, I'm Ochako Uraraka. All Might told me this is where Gran Torino lives!" she said hoping someone was home. She waited around for a few minutes before the door opened. A short elderly man was in front of her. He was wearing a hero costume.

"Hello, miss how can I help you?" he asked with a smile. Something was off about him if her elder sensor had anything to say about it. The old man acted senile but he didn't feel senile. His house was also oddly clean. Sure it was a run down neighborhood, but he was a no name hero so that wasn't unexpected.

"Are you Gran Torino? I was hoping to intern with you," Ochako smiled and nodded at him.

The old man had a blank look, "Gran Torino? Who's that young miss?"

"All Might told me he lives here," Ochako replied.

"But I live here and I don't know any fella named Gran Torino," the old man replied.

She cocked her head. His act was good or it was genuine. _One way to test it_, she thought. With an all to quick movement she brought out her hand to shake. "I'm sorry to have bothered you." He didn't flinch, but his muscles tensed a bit. "Gran Torino," Ochako finished her sentence.

The old man grinned at her, "You're a clever lass. Come in and get changed." The old man left the door open and walked away. Ochako crossed the threshold and closed the door behind her.

"Changed? What now?" she asked looking at her suitcase.

"What are you daft? Yes now. I want to see where you're at," Gran Torino stated sitting down on a couch.

Opening the suitcase she pulled out her hero costume. It looked bulky but the hero costumes were designed so that one person could put them on. Right in the porch she shed her top. "I have a bathroom if you want privacy," Gran Torino offered.

"Its embarrassing but I'm good. I can't get flustered just cause I show some skin. My next hero costume is going to have to be more flexible and change to match my new strength," Ochako stated pulling the top part of her garb over her head. Then the pants were next to go. In the matter of a minute she had changed into her hero outfit. "I'm ready!" Ochako stated walking into the room with him.

"Who are you again?" the old man replied with a blank stare. This tripped her up and for a moment she lost sight of him. The old man wasn't on the couch anymore. If not for the small sound off one wall, she would have been blindsided by a kick. Instead she blocked it. Despite his small stature he packed one hell of a punch. Whatever his quirk was it dramatically increased his speed.

He shot off again and bounced around the room like a bullet. "Are you going to fight me or not?" Gran Torino questioned shooting past her and then at her. His kick landed square onto her back and almost knocked her over. Power coursed into her arms and legs.

Her foot was under the coffee table and it went airborne. This had caused him to change trajectory. She lunged out and just missed a punch. Before the table hit the ground she got her fingers on it. The next two strikes were fast. Her empowered arms took the brunt both times. The power of One For All increased her defense and strength so the hits didn't hurt at all.

Gran Torino tried to use the now floating table to kick off from. As soon as he hit it, it nearly hit the floor. Uraraka just got an odd sensation. One For All must be enhancing her base quirk and making it more controllable. One For All gave her the ability to continue to nullify the force applied to objects even after it left her touch. She could also make floating platforms that could withstand so much force before they would move.

Using the brief window of confusion that Gran Torino had made she clothes-lined the old man. This time for real he was knocked into the table and broke it. "Good. Enough," Gran Torino said getting up. "You've got a lot of spunk in ya. But a huge lack of control. I'd say your a natural at combat which is good considering you've got a lot to learn. Not only does One For All make you stronger it also makes your innate quirk stronger," Gran Torino explained getting up and wiping wood chunks from his person.

"I noticed. I can make floating platforms that you can step on now! That's so cool! But focusing the power in my limbs takes a lot out of me," Ochako complained sitting down on the couch.

"Have you tried spreading the whole power through your body?" Gran Torino asked.

"Yeah I have. Midoriya recommended that to me too," Ochako frowned.

"Midoriya?" Gran Torino asked.

Ochako blushed. "Ohh, a bit of crush, eh?" Gran Torino teased.

"No, its not like that. I just admire him. He's got it all figured out already. So far he's been more of a mentor to me than All Might," Ochako admitted.

Gran Torino sat next to her. He chuckled, "I'm not too surprised by that. All your power came naturally to him and he just needed to learn how to fight. It makes sense that he's not the most keen person when it comes to control or teaching people."

"That's unfair, but that explains a lot of problems," Ochako shrugged.

"I'm going to go out for some dinner. Practice that full body thing. If you're still stuck I'll see what I can do," Gran Torino offered jumping off the couch. She nodded.

Ochako was outside the apartment in an alleyway full of garbage bags. At least they would break her fall. She imagined the power like that of a faucet. If you opened it to quickly too much would flood in. She turned the knob ever so slightly to allow for 5% to come out. It flowed through every fiber of her being. Maintaining her concentration was most of the effort. She had to keep her hand on the knob unless she wanted it to just flood open. It was taxing to say the least.

Just moving around was hard at first. Her concentration would break after a minute or two. But every time it was easier and easier to gauge the 5%. Breathing was easier. Moving was less of a chore. She ran at the wall and leapt. Her first jumped cleared nearly 5 meters (16ft). She kicked off the wall gaping the distance between the two buildings. She gain about 2 meters (6ft) vertically. Another kick and another 2 meters (6ft). Then midway into the third kick her focus ran out and she kind of just free fell 9 meters (29.5ft) into trash. It was as humiliating as it was relieving not to get hurt for once.

She tried two more times but timed out around the same mark. Ochako resigned and headed back inside. Some twenty minutes later Gran Torino showed back up with two grocery bags.

"I improved but I can't get past a minute before it releases or floods," Ochako admitted playing with her power.

"Back when I was a hot shot hero and had my own home with a backyard. There was a leaky faucet that we had in the backyard. I was just so damned busy to fix it. One day when I got a chance to relax I had found the faucet had broken and flooded my whole garden! I was so mad, but it was my fault. Instead of just fixing the faucet and get a new one. I just let it fester," Gran Torino lamented his story.

"How does that help? I get that my faucet leaks, but how would I just fix it?" Ochako replied.

"People always go on and on about how quirks are physical parts of us. But I don't hear a lot of folks saying that the way we think about our quirks matters. A quirk is a like a muscle. Over use it enough and it grows stronger. However, also like muscles preparing your mind for the challenge ahead of time can better prepare your muscles to withstand and overcome the challenge," Gran Torino explained earning a confused look from Ochako.

"You know about martial arts right?" Gran Torino asked getting a nod from Ochako, "Okay. Martial arts works on the foundation of two things: Practice and Application. Practice is easy. Its repetition until your body feels the flow as if it was natural. Application is the hard part. You can't just go around using Martial Arts on people. That is why masters and apprentices spar. However, that's not fair. So masters setup circumstance for their apprentices to think through and then act out the plan. It could be as simple as demonstrating a strike to putting someone in an arm or leg lock. Point is they're envisioning their actions before they do them."

"So you're saying I need to change the way I think about One For All," Ochako caught on.

"I do, but not too much. Its like that of a faucet opening a channel, right?" Gran Torino asked.

"Yeah kind of like that," Ochako replied knowing he more or less nailed it.

"Then what do you imagine that faucet is made of? It doesn't have to be a real substance. But it could just have priorities like unbreakable and immutable. The knob could be attached to a better valve. The options are there for you to upgrade it as you see fit," Gran Torino suggested putting frozen taiyaki in the microwave.

"Okay I'll try that," Ochako stated taking a deep breath. She looked within at her faucet. It was a basic as could be. He was right she should upgrade it. Before she misunderstood how faucets worked, but now she understood what she wanted and needed. The faucet was reformed and hardened greatly. The valve was made indestructible and connected to a better knob. It had spokes on like those old style faucets in schools. She could turn it and the valve would only let so much through. It did not budge or move. The amount coming in was stable. Now she just needed a simple consistent way to quickly 'turn' the faucet on. _Zero Coat: 5%_ Ochako thought powering up.

"I did it!" she jumped punching the ceiling, "Opps."

"Congratulations. Now the real fun begins, but after dinner," Gran Torino grinned. Ochako nodded and kept the power rushing through her. She wanted to get used to the feeling.

After they had there poverty dinner it was show time. Uraraka was more than capable of keeping up with Gran Torino. She still couldn't land a hit to save her life, but he couldn't land a clean hit on her either. After 4 hours of exhausting combat they were done. After powering down Uraraka's body ached. Her muscles weren't used to the power and the stress. All in all it was a first day well spent.


	19. Internship's - Part 2

\- Bakugo's Internship -

Katsuki had chosen the prestigious Best Jeanist Hero Agency. In retrospective, this would turn out to be a shitty decision. Best Jeanist was the number 4 hero in Japan and had an impressive history capturing villains. The blonde teen stood outside the tall skyscraper. He was already wearing his hero costume as Best Jeanist had asked. Katsuki sighed and strode through the automatic doors.

He was as punctual as any would expect of a teenager. Which in Katsuki's case meant he was always 20 minutes early. Best Jeanist was waiting for him in the lobby.

"Ah, Ground Zero, you're early," Jeanist stated. The hero was clad nose to toes in denim. The man looked just like his photos. The only thing Katsuki wasn't expecting was just how tall Jeanist was. The pro was nearly a full head and shoulders over the teen.

"Its better to show up early to the crime as opposed to too late," Katsuki replied.

Best Jeanist smiled or at least what Katsuki thought he did. You could still his brow move and hints of his cheeks. "Well said. I can tell I will not be wrong for allowing you to intern here," Jeanist stated before he continued, "First things first, let's get you up to the salon and make you presentable."

Katsuki rose an eyebrow but complied. They got into an elevator together.

"What exactly are we going to be doing? If you don't mind me asking," Katsuki rolled his shoulders and glanced at the tall pro.

"Like I said we need to address your popularity. You look aggressive and act conceited," Jeanist stated not holding any punches.

Katsuki felt a vein pop on his forehead from the mounting anger. "Like hell you would know," the teen mumbled.

"I do know. I had a few guys do a public poll on all the finalists in the last event. You public ratings were the lowest of the 4. That Midoriya beat all three of you combined though," Jeanist explained in a fairly monotone manner.

This was news to the teen. Izuku was ahead of him yet again. Just trying to stay on that guy's coattails would be hard enough. "Todoroki and Uraraka beat me, huh?" Katsuki lamented.

"Uraraka was the second most popular. Todoroki only beat you by a few percents. Its still not bad for your first public showing but you were first so you should have done much better," Jeanist pointed out.

"That's because that bastard Izuku has the drive and power to be the Symbol of Peace," Katsuki found himself making an excuse.

"Still that just means you need to work on your public appeal all that more," Jeanist reasoned.

The elevator dinged. They stepped out and into what was literally a salon. It was fully stocked and had a few full time stylists. Katsuki gulped. He was going to get a make over.

"Now step right into the chair and I'll get you prepped myself," Jeanist instructed walking past the designated chair and planning out his tools of choice.

Katsuki had to do something to delay the man's efforts or at least reduce them. "How is this going to help me?" Katsuki asked sitting down.

"Simple. Public perception is just as important as effectiveness. If we can take away some of that resting angry face you'll be in a better place," Jeanist explained washing his hands.

"What about Endeavor? I've got the skill and power. Do I really need the make over?" Katsuki snarled getting gradually more pissed.

The tall hero sighed. The pro then kicked a lever under Katsuki. The chair was free to swivel. Jeanist then spun him around to face him. Best Jeanist leaned against the table.

"Have you heard of the three P's?" Jeanist asked.

"The three P's?" Katsuki rose an eyebrow.

"No. Let me explain then. The three P's are fundamental to your success as a top hero," Jeanist started to pace around with his hand behind his back, "They stand for Power, Productivity, and Popularity. Not only must you be the best in every category to succeed, but they all must be balanced. Power is the most obvious one. If you don't have the power to do your job then you are no hero. Some like me have to use pure skill and technique to make up for the weakness of our quirks. While others are like Endeavor or All Might and already have a strong quirk. However, as important as having great power is, it is also restraint. If you cannot control your quirk what good can you really do?"

The man held up two fingers, "Second is productivity. This can be many things, but it is mostly criminals caught and natural disasters contained. Other things that could contribute to it are for example my clothing line. While it helps with popularity, I also provide cheap well made clothing to the masses. Some like to volunteer. Others assist with police work and are detectives on the side. There are a lot of ways to be productive and use our quirks to help. Just capturing criminals is the least of what a true hero does."

Katsuki couldn't help but find the lecture exhausting. The problem was Jeanist had a point and in his mind he was thinking of possible ways to further use his quirk. Best Jeanist held up three fingers, "Lastly, we have Popularity. This is the quintessence component of any hero. This is what separates us from the villains. After all we are just one side of the same coin. Any hero could become a villain and any villain could redeem themselves. However, being popular could make the difference between people celebrating your victory over a villain or condemning you for the property damage you caused trying to apprehend the villain. The most popular of us can get away with a surprising amount of damage if the situation merited it. This doesn't mean some one like All Might can go around causing reckless damage. It just gives him a level of leeway depending on the villain he's facing."

Best Jeanist continued to pace around, but his tone got more excited and inspired, "This is where giving you an overhaul comes in. Much of our popularity simply comes from the way we look. Sure, actions and interviews can make up for the less appealing of us heroes, but at the end of the day those of us blessed with better looks will still get higher polling. Which brings me to you. The Sport Festival showcased your raw ferocity and brutality. I'm hoping I can dampen that impression by making you easier on the eyes."

Katsuki was pissed now. He tried to get up, but the fabric from his costume was wrapped around the chair armrests. Much to the teen's dismay he was now bound to the chair. "Don't you fucking do it!" Katsuki threatened.

"What foul language. Don't worry it shouldn't take to long to give you a better look," Jeanist stated with almost a sinister sound to his voice.

It wasn't quick. It wasn't pleasant. Katsuki had been restrained even more than before. After one more comment he was threatened with being silenced. Three hours had passed and his hair was under control for the now. His unkempt mop of a hair had been forced into a proper style. A style that was very similar to Best Jeanist.

A vibration from the teen's pocket knocked him out of his stupor. He had just got a text. It was directed at the 'Symbol of Peace' line group. The group name was obviously Izuku's idea. Yaoyorozu, Izuku, Katsuki, Uraraka, Ashido, Kirishima, Iida, Ojiro and the newly added Todoroki were all in the line group. This was more or less Katsuki circle of friends. While Ojiro, Iida, Ashido, and Todoroki were a bit of a stretch they seemed like alright people.

Izuku was a 20-sided die for some reason. Bastard couldn't keep a profile picture for more than a month. Kirishima had a rock for his icon which was fitting. Uraraka had a spaceship. Todoroki was a snowflake. Iida was a wheel from a car. Ojiro took the fist that was at the screen instead of the one to the heavens. Ashido had apple juice for some damned reason. Katsuki was an cartoon explosion. It was corny but it suited him. Yaoyorozu probably had the oddest one being a pencil. It didn't really scream her, but more like the first one she found that was 'okay'.

D20: Hey guys! How are your internships going so far?

Rock: Picking up trash around the city is SO boring!

Pencil: Have to do a commercial shoot. Absolutely, dreading it!

Apple Juice: What product?! That sounds fun!

Pencil: Whatever one Uwabami is doing.

Spaceship & Apple Juice: I love the products she endorses!

D20: lawls. I'm jealous. I'm doing desk work.

Explosion: Better than what I'm doing...

"Lovely, conversation your friends are having," Jeanist said from behind Katsuki's shoulder.

Katsuki jerked his head back, "Oh, I shouldn't be on my phone, huh?"

"It's fine. It's not like you can do much else while I tame this hair of yours," Jeanist combing the hair into position. Even the slightest tap or movement by Katsuki would cause over half of it to just undo.

Rock: That at trash duty is better than desk duty!

Pencil & Apple Juice: **Nod**

D20: **Shrug**

Pencil: What about our silent guys? What are you three up to?

Wheel & Snowflake: Out on patrol can't talk much.

Fist: Babysitting some citizens that got into a minor fender bender.

Explosion: Good to hear we're all having fun.

Pencil, Apple Juice, D20, Fist, Rock, and Spaceship: lol.

Spaceship: At least you guys are at your agency. I haven't even got to mine yet.

The tall man made a 'hmm' sound. Katsuki looked up at him. "I think we're done for now," Jeanist commented rotating Katsuki to a mirror. His hair had been groomed to match the pro. It was staying down too.

"What now?" Katsuki asked trying to ignore the silly looking dude in the mirror.

"I was going to patrol around the area, but I had a better idea," Jeanist kicked a lever on the chair. Katsuki fell forward and caught himself by standing up. "Let's go to the sparring room. Then we can see you in action," Jeanist smirked.

The teen palmed an explosion liking that idea. The explosion was more than enough to undo all the hard work Jeanist had put in. The pro hero just sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. Despite being disappointed in his handiwork, he kept to the plan.

Again they were on the elevator. "Didn't mean to ruin the hairdo, but my hair is just kind of like that dry," the teen pointed out.

"Probably, due to your quirk. By the end of this week I swear to you I will find a way to tame it!" Jeanist promised. Katsuki nervously chuckled. The elevator dinged. The entire floor was basically a gym. There were separated rooms for yoga, personalized sparring, and certain self defense courses. The general area had a plethora of treadmills, weight lifting machines, and a large boxing ring. They made a beeline for the boxing ring. The ring was quarter the size of the tournament stage. It was quite large for being indoors. Based on the room layout, Katsuki could only predict that the extra rooms were actually upstairs and the doors were just small elevators.

There were two heroes practicing in the ring. When they spotted Best Jeanist they stopped. "Sir, what are you doing here?" one of them asked. By they're reaction Katsuki could tell this was unusual for Jeanist to be here.

"Just seeing what our intern is capable of," Jeanist replied in the most calm voice. The other two paled and got out of the ring immediately. This was a bad sign if Katsuki understood cues at all.

Using his quirk, Jeanist opened the ring ropes to let them in. This should have been bad sign number one, but Katsuki dismissed it. A few of the heroes around the room noticed Best Jeanist. They all got ring side. It must be rare to see Best Jeanist in action.

Katsuki stood at one corner and Jeanist in the other. "See if you can get me after the bell is rung. Can some one ring the bell, please?" The pro hero requested. There was an old boxing bell off to the side of the ring. One of the heroes near it pulled the switch. The bell rang **loud**. Katsuki got maybe one step before he was unable to move.

Best Jeanist's number 4 hero spot wasn't for show. The man had amazingly fast reflexes. In that split second both of Katsuki's hands had been put to his chest and held there. If he dared to use his quirk the recoil would be immense.

"You're smart and your instincts are very refined for someone your age," Jeanist complimented him.

"Not enough to even reach you though," Katsuki lamented.

"Perhaps, not, but I have years of experience and superior quirk control over you," Jeanist pointed out.

"Then what was the point of this?" Katsuki asked glaring.

"To show just how big that mountain you hope to climb is. That friend of your Midoriya, from what I can tell is almost there. Thanks to that quirk of his too he'll just keep getting stronger. You have a limit though," Jeanist explained loosening the threads around Katsuki.

This just pissed Katsuki off to no end, "God damn everyone. Will people stop fucking comparing me to that bastard!" Katsuki kicked off the ground and was stopped almost an inch later.

"Get used to it. He's in your class and your same age," Best Jeanist rebutted. This just made him angrier. Every time the threads would loosen he'd creep further. Every time he rotate his hand just a little bit more away from his chest. Jeanist then threw him into the corner.

"If that's all the spunk you have. I'm afraid you won't get far," Jeanist deadpanned beckoning Katsuki to attack.

This interaction between them went on for 4 hours before Katsuki was unable to stand. Best Jeanist had run him ragged and he had nothing to show for it. Not even once had he got close enough to even be able to do anything. The top 10 were in they're own league. And then All Might was in his own league above that.

\- Yaoyorozu's Internship -

Momo had arrived with another. Someone she kind of recognized. She was another hero from Class B. Itsuka Kendo dubbed the big sister of Class B. Kendo's hero uniform was just as bad as hers in terms of skin. Kendo had an ongoing vibe to her and wasn't afraid to wave to Momo when she arrived.

"You choose Uwabami too, huh?" Kendo asked smiling in a very similar way to Izuku. They were eerily similar.

"I did. She's a popular woman that's high up on the ranks so I was hoping to learn a few things from her," Momo stated in a less than casual manner.

"Wow, what a coincidence! That's the same reason I choose her," Kendo seemed to have a permanent smile plastered on her face.

They both went through the front door. The receptionist directed them to what floor they should go to. In the elevator some worry was sitting in. Momo had quite a few offers. The heiress had gotten an invitation from Miruko's agency. After watching a few videos of Miruko in action she decided that the Rabbit Hero was too intense for her.

Momo had some 30 floors to wait before they would get to Uwabami's studio. While small talk wasn't in the plan it would speed things up. "How has your class been doing?" Momo asked glancing over at Kendo.

Kendo sighed, "Its just pure chaos sometimes. Especially, with all the quirk training we've been doing."

"Quirk training? No, live training?" Momo asked rising her eyebrow.

"Yeah, Vlad, thinks our quirk strength is low, so that needs to be taken care of first. He said:" her face got more stern looking and she stood up straight, "'You can get live training out on the field! Right now I need to make sure you'll all be useful once you get there.' or something like that." She giggled putting back on her normal look.

"Huh, its been all practical quirk application for us. We haven't done much quirk training at all," Momo brought her hand to her chin. She thought about it for a moment. If she looked at the class overall they were all strong quirk users. Class A must have been for the naturally strong quirks that need more control to be useful. Class B was for the under performers that needed more guidance off the bat. It made sense. Both classes would progress at about the same rate over the whole group. Momo then wondered if they would ever be pitted against one another. It would be good training, but furthermore it would open a dialog between the two classes. A task that for some reason has been rather hard to do.

"Huh, neat. What was the USJ like?" Kendo asked. It was an inevitable question.

"At first we were frightened, but after a few of us stepped up we remembered that we're heroes in training. Then we did our best to fight the villains that attacked us. Most of them were really weak," Momo replied letting her arm fall to her side.

"Oh, that's so cool! I'd like to think that most of us in class B would do the same," Kendo commented.

"Expect for the three main villains the rest weren't too scary," Momo shrugged.

"Nomu, Shigaraki, and Kurogiri, right?" Kendo asked and Momo nodded, "I heard a rumor that Nomu almost killed someone."

"Well, I'm pretty sure he would have died if not for his quirk," Momo smirked thinking about him.

"No way! You're tell me Midoriya took on Nomu!?" Kendo almost shouted... in an elevator.

Momo winced from the sudden increase in volume, "Yeah, he did along side Aizawa, Uraraka, and Todoroki."

Kendo whistled, "Must have been one heck of a beast to hold back 4 people."

Momo scoffed, "Hold back? They lost. It wasn't until All Might showed up that we had a chance."

Kendo frowned, "Sorry. I've just been so curious about the whole thing. I just assumed that it went a lot better than it did."

Momo sighed just as the elevator dinged. "Don't be. I'm glad we made it through in one piece," Momo smiled at Kendo. Kendo nodded and smiled back.

Uwabami was sitting down getting her makeup and hair done. Without turning to see them, "Welcome girls! How have your days been so far?"

"Good!" Kendo replied. "Alright," Momo shrugged.

The pro waved away her assistants. The woman turned to see the teens. Her eyes lit up when she saw them. "Oh, you're so much better looking in person!" Uwabami commented standing up. The pro strode over to them and inspected them. "You'll both do," she stated nodding.

"Do what?" Momo asked a bit worried.

"For the commercial obviously. I'm doing a shampoo ad and I was hoping that the interns were good looking. Neither of you disappoint," Uwabami smirked waving over a few assistants.

"I didn't sign up to be a hero to do ads," Momo started frowning.

Uwabami frowned, "Oh no? Are you going to rise to the top with your power and good looks alone?"

Momo hesitated. She didn't know if she wanted to be a top hero. She just wanted to help people and make the world a better place. "I just want to contribute and make the world a better place," Momo replied.

Uwabami took a few more strides to Momo. The older woman was just taller than Momo. "So do I. But how am I going to reach the most people as I am? Putting in the hard work only gets you so far at some point you have to diversify. That's why I'm doing this ad," the pro hero admitted. She was glaring down at Momo.

"Not all hero work is catching villains and stopping disasters. Some of us use our good looks and brains to advertise the _right_ products and solve problems. Don't for a moment think I'm doing any regular ad. This product has a particularly low carbon footprint and is cheap for the average consumer. This is what I do to better the world," Uwabami stated with a death glare. Momo felt herself recoil from the overwhelming presence of the pro. Uwabami smirked and backed off, "Now let's beautify both of you and get you ready!"

They sent hours in front of bright mirrors touching up their hair, face, and skin. Momo tried to spend the time texting which Kendo was very interested in. "Can you add me? I'd love to get to know some of the class A folks," Kendo asked.

"As must as I'd like to Izuku is the admin of the line group. You'd have to ask him. I can add your number to my phone, though," Momo replied wincing as her hair was straightened.

"Izuku? Is that Midoriya?" Kendo asked cocking her head.

Momo mentally facepalmed. "Yeah, that's Midoriya. Do you want his number too?" Momo admitted and offered.

"You call him by first name basis?" Kendo was just inquisitive.

"I do. A lot of things happened and he's been a good friend to me," Momo replied looking away. Her cheeks got a bit warm. She was blushing.

"Ooh, you've got a crush! Does he know?" Kendo asked.

"I don't. I idolize him that's all," Momo rebutted.

"Come on. I can tell!" Kendo pointed out actually pointing to her cheeks.

"Its really not like that. I'm grateful to him," Momo gently pushed away Kendo's finger. The other teen was much stronger than she looked.

"Okay, okay, promise to tell me if any juice details come to light," Kendo teased. Momo smiled and nodded. It was good that maybe she had made another friend.

The two of them were the background extras for the shoot. They didn't have any lines and just had to look pretty. Later the two of them shared phone numbers. The day ended completely uneventful. But this was just day one of a four day internship and surely something would happen...

* * *

**Drakonite227**:

I feel like I captured what its like being a pro hero. Endeavor is all about upholding the law and assisting the police. Best Jeanist is half clothes and half crime fighting. Then Uwabami a somewhat lesser hero and has to contribute in a less conventional but still impactful manner.

I really liked the idea that these kids are just naive and these pro's are here to set them straight. After all this first internship is more about making connections and 'experiencing' pro work. Thanks for reading the chapter! The next major chapter will be Stain!


	20. Bonus - The Philosophy of Villainy

Bonus Chapter - The Philosophy of Villainy

Shigaraki was tapping his fingers annoyed to all hell. The guild recruiter was taking his sweet time. Its not like the man was paid or anything. Kurogiri was out on a quest. Master was being his usual quiet self. He hadn't got a quest from him in a long time. Then again Shigaraki was still in the mist of finishing the storyline quest. A quest which had very little in the way of markers or clues.

A short sound like that of a puff was made. Kurigiri was back. "I found him," the void man stated.

Shigaraki rose an eyebrow. He wasn't aware that the man was on a fetch quest. "Who?" Shigaraki replied.

"Stain the hero killer," Kurigiri stated taking a few steps towards Shigaraki.

"An interesting find. Take me to him. I'd like to meet him," Shigaraki requested.

"I will warn you. He's a bit abrasive," Kurigiri warned earning a shrug from Shigaraki. They two of them vanished. Shigaraki felt the wind at his back as he looked out at the night time city. They were on a rooftop. The leader of the league could feel the man's bloodlust. Stain was behind them on the other side of rooftop.

Stain didn't regard them at first. He was surveying the area probably looking for his next kill quest. Kurigiri spoke up first, "Stain, have a moment?"

Stain didn't look at them but replied, "Make it quick. I have a quota to fill in this area after all."

A quota? Shigaraki was intrigued now. "You're that famous Hero Killer, right?" Shigaraki asked grinning madly.

"If that is the title you must use. Then it is correct. I have killed many and crippled more," Stain lamented. Shigaraki took a few more steps towards Stain. It was around this point he was in kill range that Stain turned to look at them.

"Alright, Hero Killer, would you like to chat somewhere more comfortable? I think you would be a great recruit," Shigaraki asked. Stain looked to the alleyways one last time and then nodded.

They were all gone in an instant. Stain looked around getting his bearings. The man was cautious by nature and he should be. His rep with Shigaraki wasn't high enough for him to earn any benefits.

"What do you stand for?" Stain was straight to the point.

"The league aims to eradicate society and build a new one with quirks on top! The idea of villains and heroes will be abolished. Only the strong will rule," Shigaraki stated like he was reading from a script.

"Eradicate society huh? Then I'm not interested," Stain bluntly stated.

"What? You kill heroes all the time!" Shigaraki retorted getting a glare from Stain.

"I'm doing that as a service to society! Heroes that only in it for the money and fame are a blight on society. They need to be purged so that only the pure remain. I can't agree with destroying it all," Stain explained his muscles tensing. His danger sense was as sharp as could be and Shigaraki was driving it wild.

"That's a half measure! Why not purge the whole thing and start with a clean slate?" Shigaraki asked his hands getting antsy. He was getting annoyed at this false hero.

"All Might is the reason. As long as there are heroes like him. Then this society is worth saving. All I have to do is weed out the greedy. Now send me back," Stain commanded.

Shigaraki was almost ready to just attack, but a thought came to mind. "What about the next Symbol of Peace?"

"The pretender? I'll kill him just as I would any of them," Stain deadpanned.

"What would you say if I could give you a good shot at taking him down?" Shigaraki grinned seeing the gears rotate in Stain's head.

Stain never had a problem finding and killing targets. But it was all random. He had many on his hit list. Endeavor and this new pretender were number one. "I'm listening. If he wasn't under so much scrutiny I'd get him myself," Stain answered.

"What if I said I could give you Endeavor and Midoriya?" Shigaraki was still grinning. It somehow got even more wicked.

"I'm all ears," Stain replied.

"Join us and I'll tell you," Shigaraki offered holding a hand out for Stain. The black clad man armed to teeth hesitated. This was the ultimate opportunity so nail his biggest mark and get a bonus. But he had to offer up his soul. Unless he got caught then he'd be out of the league. While life in Tartarus would suck it would be preferable to being a puppet.

The man shook the villain's hand reluctantly. "Its official! Tell the recruiter to suck it. I could do his job better than him any day," Shigaraki gloated. Stain had not missed that Shigaraki's pinky was not in that handshake. Most likely quirk related.

"Tell me then what's my big opportunity?" Stain asked.

"Believe it or not, I have an informant in UA. This informant has given us a detailed report of which students went to what agencies. Midoriya choose Endeavor's agency. The problem is we're too under geared and under leveled. We're also short of the minimum raid requirement. But there's a chance we can run a stealth op and get them out of the fortress," Shigaraki reached behind the bar and pulled out a map.

"I think I get the gist of it. You're a bit hard to understand, but I can manage," Stain admitted watching Shigaraki.

The head villain pulled up the map of Hosu. "Right now a kid name Tenya Iida is out on the streets of Hosu around here. This is just on the edge of your normal radius. If I recall correctly you just recently hospitalized his older brother... Ingenium. So this kid is probably out for revenge and he thinks he's a hotshot cuz he survived our last raid. You could use him to bait his friend," Shigaraki plotted folding up the map.

"Based on what you know would Midoriya he a problem one on one?" Stain asked hoping to learn more than what the Sport Festival showed him.

"The kid grows at a terrifying rate. I'd dare say just as fast as you Master," Shigaraki turned to the one screen hoping to get a reaction. 'Tch' "Apparently, his quirk allows him to gain a duplicate of another person's quirk. Its bloody god tier and a nat 20 at that. He's more powerful at the Sport Festival then when he fought the Nomu. I wouldn't underestimate him. For all you know he could have Endeavor's quirk by now," Shigaraki posited.

"A scary individual. What would someone do with all those quirks?" Stain commented. The TV crackled on.

"Indeed, what a scary individual. If you manage to survive Stain tell me what kind of progress he's made with his quirk. If you think you can kill him then try to, but I will be disappointed potential like that is hard to come by," a deep voice from the TV stated.

"Good night, Master, why are you interested in Midoriya?" Shigaraki asked looking at the screen.

Stain was getting wicked vibes from the TV. Whatever it was was giving him a spine chilling vibe. His stomach was turning and his blood turning cold. This man had an overwhelming presence from just the scene of a television.

"Let's just say I have a vested interest in the young man," the voice replied before the TV was off again.

Shigaraki sighed he was being cryptic as usual. "If you're worried about other heroes showing up. Let's just say I have a few toys to throw at them," Shigaraki laughed maniacally.

"Void person send me back," Stain requested. This stopped Shigaraki dead in his tracks.

"You want to go back and claim a few more victims?" Shigaraki asked.

"Its Kurigiri, Stain. If you wish," the void man complied and made a portal next to him.

"My job is barely done. Just because I joined your cause doesn't mean I'll abandon my own," Stain reasoned taking a step towards the portal. Shigaraki took one step towards him. Stain stopped in his tracks.

"While normally I won't mind if my lackeys went and grinded some xp. In this case the op is too crucial to jeopardize. So I'd prefer if you stayed," Shigaraki demanded quite sternly.

Stain was reaching for his katana and a pair of throwing knives. The next moments were like lightning. Shigaraki was just as quick as Stain. The black clad assassin had his katana in hand. The throwing knives had just missed their target.

"Willing to fight your way out of here?" Shigaraki asked/yelled.

"Of course! I have a few heroes in mind that were nearby I'd like to cut down!" Stain stated back. The assassin lunged at Shigaraki. A dodge and a near hit with a full grip. Stain was keen to prevent Shigaraki from touching him. A few more exchanges and they were no closer to harming each other. They were almost even in combat skill. Shigaraki had the slight edge being just tougher. Another minute of dodging the katana and Stain deftly dodging Shigaraki's open hands went on.

Shigaraki decided to gamble. His luck stat was pretty good after all. When Stain went to strike with his katana Shigaraki decided to go for the blade. It lands home on his palm but his quirk activated. Stain jumped away and tossed a few knives at him.

The damage was done. The katana broke just around where the fingers touched. A knife sunk into his right shoulder. The other went wide. They both lunged again. Portal opened all over the shop.

"That is enough," Kurigiri stated. Both of Shigaraki's hands were in portals and a pair of knives were planted into the ceiling.

Shigaraki sighed and nodded. "I guess I'll need to replace my katana," Stain lamented tossing the decaying weapon to the floor.

"I have a contact that may help," Kurigiri offered.

"I expect to see you both over here tomorrow so we can go through the specifics of the plans," Shigaraki stated pulling out the knife in his shoulder. The first aid was his next step. Good thing he had a decent skill in First Aid.

Kurogiri and Stain vanished from sight. The TV flickered on once more, "I've got 4 more Nomu's ready for you to use. Just let me know when you want to deploy them."

"Thank you, Master, I'll make sure to use them at the peak of the excitement," Shigaraki grinned as the TV turned off again. This stealth op was going to turn into a small dungeon battle.

* * *

**Drakonite227**:

I've been trying to blitz these updates in order to get both sites on par with each other. That being said I took some time to look over the reviews. It seems that the villainous quirk idea was received with mixed feelings.

The philosophy on that one is pretty simple. For any pro that was involved with All For One Izuku's quirk is just too similar. For the regular citizen a bit of slippery slope logic could be applied to him. A very basic question has to be asked: What stops him from taking any quirk he sees fit? This was eluded to in the Tournament fight against Shinso. As for others that have been called villainous, Shinso stands out. Monoma also got bullied since his copying was considered useless and he also had to resort to less heroic methods to use it. In Izuku's case imagine all that negativity maximized because he can take your quirk and make your unique traits his. He doesn't actually take it but still the act of making it less unique could mess with some kids in their formative years.

Villains. I'm increasing the stakes for both the Summer Training Camp, the Rescue Operation, and Overhaul's Arc. It should be apparent that Izuku is not going to follow his canon footsteps. That would be a huge lose of opportunity for me. His path will diverge. This is still 10+ chapters from now so the idea is still in the works but it'll be fitting for our OP protagonist.

I'll try to include more author notes that attempt to explain how and why I'm doing certain things. I'll mostly use them to clear up math logic or explain extreme deviations. There with be more of them in future and they all will be like this one. I added it in this chapter since this is just a short chapter.


	21. Skirt With Death

It was Thursday afternoon. Wednesday was a fairly standard run-of-the-mill day. Izuku was sitting at his desk stretching out his legs. It was about the time for Endeavor to come around. Except today he didn't. Izuku had been texting with his friends. A one Kendo from class B had somehow gained his number. Tetsutetsu had also got his number. After a surprisingly convincing conversation with Kendo he added her to the 'Symbol of Peace' line group. Kirishima had begged and pleaded with Izuku to add Tetsutetsu as well. Which he buckled fairly quickly. It was fine since both of them were actually quite normal.

Izuku opened a private chat with Todoroki.

D20: Todo, how goes it?

Snowflake: Iida is starting to get desperate. He's been breaking away from his handler. Stain so far hasn't been seen lately at all.

D20: That's good I guess. Hopefully, Stain can stay away until Friday night.

Snowflake: Same. Stain sounds pretty intimidating.

D20: Just don't engage him. He's a killer.

Snowflake: Roger.

Izuku closed the private chat and then opened another one with Momo. She had changed her sign to a Star.

D20: How are you doing? I saw the ad and you look great in it!

Star: Bored. Getting sick of doing 2-4 hours of make up and hair styling! Thanks though.

D20: Its almost over. Has there been any activity recently?

Star: Nope. Been quiet as could be. How's things going with Mei?

That caught Izuku off guard he wasn't expecting to get a question like that from Momo.

D20: Its been a bit rocky ever since my schedule got so busy. She's kept herself busy too so it hasn't been too bad.

Star: I'm sorry to hear that.

Izuku paused for moment wondering about the sudden interest. Most people that asked questions like that had an ulterior motive. He didn't want to think Momo would do that, but it was possible.

D20: Why did you ask?

Star: I just wanted to make sure you were doing well. For some people their girlfriend/boyfriend is their rock.

D20: Fair enough. But I'm not normal at all.

Star: No you're not. Lol.

D20: **Smiley Face**. Talk to you later.

Star: Likewise.

It was around dusk when Endeavor came to see him. "You've been doing well. I'll actually be sad to see you go," Endeavor commented hovering over Izuku.

"Yeah, I kind of enjoy being support. But I do like being out there more," Multi Force stated smiling up at Endeavor.

"Your numbers are pretty good too. Come on let's get out there," Endeavor gestured to the elevator.

Multi Force stood up and started to apply his armor. He had done this many times and had quite good at reapplying his equipment.

"Ready at a moments notice, eh?" Endeavor pointed out as they were both in the elevator.

"I have to be to be the best, right? I might have them redesign my armor again," Mutli Force chuckled and cracked his knuckles.

"Have you considered my offer?" Endeavor asked out of the blue.

"The one for your quirk?" Multi Force asked getting a nod from the pro, "I think I can do without. I've already got so many good quirks. It'll be difficult if I get too many after all."

Endeavor didn't reply and looked like he was in thought. The rest of the ride down was silent. Multi Force had grown quite comfortable around the pro hero. When he wasn't on scene Endeavor was a pretty good guy.

"You coming or should I get out there by myself?" Multi Force asked Endeavor who was still in the elevator.

"Oh right. Let's head out," Endeavor snapped to his senses. They strode out into the city. There was an off vibe from Endeavor. He was plotting something and Multi Force would not like it. They got stopped by some local gang members.

"Hey, Multi Force!" one of them beckoned over. It was about 3 guys and a woman. They were all wearing baggy clothes and leaning against something. Multi Force looked up at Endeavor. Endeavor shrugged.

The teen walked over to the group. "What's up?" Multi Force asked. He didn't want to be overly formal all the time.

"I've to say sorry man," one of the lizard looking guys apologized.

"For what?" Multi Force asked.

"A few days ago, my homie thought you were some pretentious asshole. So he was like 'yo, I'm gunna get some of my pepps together and scare this foo'," the man explained.

"Oh, that guy? Sorry they got arrested assaulting me," Multi Force smirked.

The guy waved, "Nah, he was stupid. We told him ya got to get him into an alley, but foo' was like 'nah man I got this'." Multi Force laughed a bit at the comment and a few of the gang members laughed with him.

"Again, man, no hard feelin'. I ain't lookin' to fight ya. I think ya really could be the new Symbol," the man stated offering a handshake to Multi Force. The teen accepted the gesture and smiled at them in return.

"I won't forget about you guys. I'm sorry for the shit society has put you through, but I'll do what I can to correct it when I go pro," Multi Force promised.

"You ain't the first to claim it, but ya the first I believe," the man replied. The other members nodded.

Multi Force and Endeavor had to go. He waved goodbye. The two heroes we're walking the streets. The traffic was near nonexistent and they were only a few groups of people here and there. Apparently, world had got around and Multi Force was the people's champion. This was amazing for his publicity and it felt pretty good to be recognized.

"You sure have a way to inspire people. That's a rare trait for heroes to have," Endeavor commented grinning madly.

"I just was being honest and true to myself. Its nothing special," Multi Force shrugged.

"Except it is. Not many have the natural magnetism you do. I think you're going to go places," Endeavor patted him on the back as he had done a few times before. Then Multi Force felt it. Skin to skin contact at his neck. Multi Force pivoted on a dime and jumped away from the pro. This was not missed by the gangs.

"What the hell did you just do?!" Multi Force shouted feeling the new quirk pop into his space. Fire crackled and popped all over his skin. His natural fire resistance shot up. His hair was engulfed by the fire. It was green in color. The other flames around his body were red in color. Due to the thickness of his armor the flame routed to his triceps membranes. It was uncontrollable at first. Explosions popped like machine gun from his hand. The fire quirk was setting off the explosive sweat. He had to adjust his quirk space. Explosion and Hellflame were put on a toggle against each other. If one was on the other could not be. The toggle could be made on the fly and required just a thought.

"Its a parting gift," Endeavor grinned, "I had hoped you would make the decision, but instead you make it hard for me. It was quite the task getting you to trust me."

"I told you, NO! Getting a new quirk isn't some kind of cake walk for me. Its hard to learn and its harder when you have to factor in quirk synergies," Multi Force was angry. The pro had no right to just impose his quirk on Izuku. But now it was permanent.

"Seems like the base part of the quirk is already active. You're a natural after all," Endeavor commented. The thin part of Multi Force's glove was just enough to allow the fire flow from it. Summoning the fire was the easy part. What interested Izuku was the pure malleability of the fire. While he could just output it and throw it at people. He could also make a formed weapons like a sword or spear. This was a pretty versatile quirk after all.

The teen made a flaming sword, "I guess having a few other quirks let me get used to it quicker."

"Wow, such control. I'll give you a few pointers then. If you focus you can control the temperature, the thickness, and the radius of heat. Changing any of those to extreme values will be tiring and comes with the risk of overheating if the range is very high," Endeavor offered.

While it was nice getting that info, he was still pissed at the pro. He only had one question, "Radius of Heat?"

"Indeed, if you reduce the radius down to nothing you can make heatless flame that's actually cool to the touch," Endeavor pointed to his hair.

Multi Force nodded and felt around the quirk. He modified it to have three properties and each property was given 5 gears. Gear 0 was a special mode for all the properties to be put into. The heat would have no radius during this gear. His explosions were gauged similarly. Explosion was instead set between a minimum and maximum threshold.

The phone in his pocket vibrated. He dropped his flame into 0. A message had been sent to his line group. It was from Todoroki. It was a set of four numbers. Izuku just stared at the numbers for a bit. It dawned on him what they could be. They were coordinates. One was an alleyway and the other the nearest entrance to said alleyway.

_An alleyway?... Stain!_ Izuku realized his eyes going wide. The hero in training toggled explosion and touched his face. Without as much as a word he was rocketing off.

Endeavor tapped his earpiece, "Dispatch give me an update on Multi Force's location. He blasted off and it looked urgent."

"_Sir, he's moving at around 180 km/h_," the dispatch replied. _Holy shit that's fast! I'll need to catch a train to keep up with that, _Endeavor thought running to the nearest station.

"_He's en route to Hosu. Which according to the reports, all hell has broken loose,_" the dispatch stated.

"Give me a detailed report," Endeavor requested. He had time after all.

\- Stain vs Tenya Iida -

Tenya had sneaked away from the pro sidekick that was with him. Stain MO was alleyways and one on one fights. After a few days of searching he had finally struck gold. Tenya was blinded by his desire for revenge. His brother would no longer be able to ever uphold his hero name again. If it hadn't been for his dark choices he would have taken his brothers name.

Stain was standing over a hero. The man was sitting against the wall barely moving. Tenya had one good shot before Stain would be aware of him. Despite all of his instincts telling him to get help, he was determined to bring down Stain.

Tenya rushed forward and burst onto the scene. Stain was almost caught off guard. The hero killer had blocked the kicked.

"What are you doing? Go get help! Don't fight him!" the hero warned. Tenya ignored him.

"What kind of amateur are you?" Stain asked pointing his sword at Tenya.

"I want to avenge my brother! You crippled him and he can't be a hero anymore!" Tenya shouted anger laced in his voice.

"Ah, another unworthy hero. But you are the lamb that was lead to the sacrifice. Why don't you call for help before its too late," Stain mocked grinning. He was fortunate that the sacrifice had come to him and now was possible for the trap to be set.

At around that moment a bloodcurdling screamed pierced the city sounds. The nomus had come out to play. "I'll take you down myself," Tenya retorted earning a sigh from Stain. The hard way. Tenya lunged at Stain clearing the distance in a split second. A kicked was leveled at Stain. The hero killer dodged under the kick and sliced upwards. Tenya jumped back but his helmet was caught. It was knocked off him. He clearly was outmatched by the hero killer. This did not deter him. Rage and revenge blinded him.

The fight didn't last to much longer when Stain had nicked him again. Tenya was on the ground after tripping over from dodging. He was on his chest since he rolled away from a stomp. Then he was paralyzed. It was complete and absolute except for his mouth. He was still able to speak.

"As expected of an amateur like you. Taking vengeance into your own hands. That isn't becoming of a hero," Stain said crouching over the teen.

"Go to hell! I don't need a lecture from a murderer like you!" Tenya shouted from his position.

"Murderer? I'm the cleanser of society. Without me shitty heroes like you and him would just be allowed to roam free. But you're just pretenders only doing it for selfish reasons," Stain stated standing up, "Pretenders need to die." He held his sword just above Tenya's neck. He couldn't see it, but the teen could feel his doom.

That was until a streak of fire shot down the alleyway.

\- Todoroki - A bit Earlier -

Fires had broken out all across the area. Nomus were on the streets wrecking havoc. Shoto spotted Manual out on the streets shouting for someone. Black Magus got closer to the pro.

"Manual, where is Iida?" Black Magus asked getting close enough to him.

"I don't know, Magus, just before the chaos broke out I lost track of him," Manual admitted.

_Shit, that idiot!_ Black Magus cursed under his breath. The teen ran off and pulled out his phone. He was checking the maps nearby and spotted a few good alleyways to attack someone. He was skating on his ice trying to be quick about it. He probably had only one chance to get it right. Just as if entered the alleyway he pinned the location. Black Magus was panicking hoping he wasn't too late. There was no way Iida could hold his own against the Hero Killer.

Shoto didn't know if he had what it takes either, but he should be a closer match than Iida right now. His first guess struck gold. Again he pinned the map again and sent out of the coordinates to the Symbol line group.

Stain was just about to go for the kill. Black Magus held out his left hand and a beam of fire exploded from it. Stain was quick. The Hero Killer jumped back completely dodging the fire. If it wasn't for the other two and the tight quarters he could go all out.

"Another amateur steps up to the plate? Did you also come here for revenge?" Stain questioned him.

Stalling was in Shoto's best interest. "I'm just here to look out for my friend. I'm here to save him from you," Black Magus stated icing over the ground.

"How noble of you! Come on show me you're strong enough to be a hero!" Stain sliced through his ice. A feat Black Magus was not prepared for. The Hero Killer was slowly advancing on him. The ice didn't hinder him at all. The fire kept him at bay the most.

Ice spikes were brought up at him. The man jumped into the air and kicked off a wall. Two knives were thrown at Black Magus with high accuracy and a surprising speed. His ice wasn't fast enough to stop them. Both of them land home into his left arm. Stain was getting ever closer. His fire was no longer an option as without his hand to guide it, he had no accuracy. He wasn't willing to condemn two lives to just win. More ice then.

Stain was bouncing off the walls preventing his ice from be effective at all. Black Magus was not prepared for this level of speed. He had pretty good control but if his ice couldn't get close and it was too slow to actually land then he wasn't in a good spot. Two more knives sunk into Shoto's left leg. Escape options had just been removed. All he had left was hope.

Stain was at point-blank range when suddenly his sword was stopped. Black Magus dared not to move if this was a ploy. He had felt the tip of the blade on his neck and it bleed a bit.

"Let me just tell you the day I've had getting here!" that was an all to familiar voice. A voice that calmed down Shoto in an instant. The white and red-haired teen seriously doubted Stain could hold his own against Midoriya.

\- Izuku – Flying En Route -

The air rushed by Multi Force. He was almost there when he heard the screams and saw the fire. _What a bloody mess_, Multi Force thought. If Todoroki was there he could hold his own for a bit. Multi Force was in midair surveying the disaster.

Then out of nowhere a flying nomu collided with him. Claws tore into his armor as he turned to face the monster. It wasn't big like the one before. Still it was inhumanly strong. Multi Force used Full Power! He tore the claw out of his armor and socked the monster across the face. The creature recoiled back but went on the offensive. It lunged at him. Multi Force grabbed the wrist of the beast and made a arc of explosions. They were now spinning at quite the speed. Mid spin he changed from horizontal to vertical spinning.

Multi Force let out a massive explosion into the Nomu. Coupled with the momentum it had from spinning, it hit the ground going nearly the speed of sound. The ground cratered from the impact force. Multi Force released his Force Nullification and landed nicely on the ground.

The beast stood up from the crater. The hero in training was not surprised. The nomu were ridiculous creatures. The nomu beat its wings. Multi Force toggled Hellflame. He made a green fire sword. He had found out that if channeled stockpile into the fire quirk that the fire color would change. The effects of the stockpile amplified the heat and thickness of the fire.

Using telekinetic power he formed a psychic sword around the fire. The fire and psychic energy fused at the blade's edge. Instead of a rolling flame that changed various shades of green, the sword was one shade. It was a sharp contrast to his green fire hair.

Multi Force swung the sword and cut off one of its wings. The nomu was grounded now. The heat from the blade was so intense it cauterized the wound. None of regeneration the nomu had would help with a wound like that. The creature seemed pissed. It lunged at Multi Force.

He put the sword into ground and prepped his next attack. For now he was calling the sword 'Hellblade'. Multi Force dodged to his right. The nomu without his wings was pretty slow. He focus a huge percent of stockpile into his right arm muscle. Then doubled it. Next he added on top of that his psychic strength. He had been dabbling with a type of telekinesis called Tactile-kinesis. It was using psychic strength to augment his strength and fortify his body.

Multi Force swung, "Megaton Strike!" His arm strength from the stockpile was approaching 9x times empowerment. Then his psychic power added another 150kg (330lbs) to that. When the hit landed the Nomu was pounded into the concrete and it was laying limp. He had connected fully with that strike to the Nomu's face.

He dispelled his sword and switched for explosion. Now that he had quite a few quirks he found out that turning them off didn't end their physical effects. He rocketed off again.

It was a matter of seconds before Stain was in his view. Todoroki was about to get decapitated. Multi Force reaction out with all his telekinesis and halted the Hero Killer.

"Let me just tell you the day I've had getting here!" Multi Force yelled landing just next to Todoroki. The green haired teen waved at Stain and threw him back some dozen meters (38ft). Todoroki grabbed his neck and sighed.

"That was close," The teen stated looking at Izuku, "What happened to you?!"

"Someone released a few nomus and I just had to run into one of them. Bastard is taking a dirt nap for now," Izuku replied feeling that Stain was struggling to move. The man was pretty strong and Izuku only had a few minutes to restrain him.

"And I thought I had it hard taking on this guy," Todoroki commented. Izuku walked over to Iida who was on the ground.

Izuku crouched down to examine Iida, "Hey big guy. How are you doing? You appear to be paralyzed."

"Why are you guys here?" Iida whimpered. He was on the verge of crying.

"We're your friends, Iida. This is what friends do. They look out for each other. You think I want to see my friend go out and make a stupid choice. Then possibly lose his life or worse his heroism," Izuku replied lighting up his right hand. His healing quirk should be able to fight the paralyzation. Blood was dripping from his nose.

"Todoroki, help them get out of here. I'm going to heal the other hero as well," Izuku commanded striding over to the sitting hero.

"You can't hope to hold him off," the hero stated.

"You're right. I'll restrain him until back up arrives. You're looking at the next Symbol of Peace. What kind of a hero would I be if I didn't prioritize the victims and get them out of here?" Izuku smiled and healed the down hero. The man stood up but was really tired.

Izuku had to release his telekinesis. "So the pretender has finally showed up?!" Stain yelled from across the alleyway.

"Pretender? I think you're mistaken. I'm the real deal," Izuku replied glancing at Todoroki as he helped the other two leave.

"If you're so confident you won't mind going one on one with me and show me that you really are All Might's successor," Stain pulled out a few throwing knives.

"As much as you would enjoy that. I don't have a license and won't fight you," Izuku pointed out. Once Todoroki got out of sight, he brandished his Hellblade. "I'm just here to stall you until a real hero gets on the scene," Izuku activated his Full Power!

Stain hurled a dozen knives at him before he got into melee range. Every knife had been deflected by psychic energy.

Thanks to Izuku's empowerment his physical prowess was above that of Stain. Their swords clashed. Stain had to back away when the blade was turning red hot.

"Stain. You're quite the fighter, but I'm the closest thing the student body has to a pro hero," Izuku commented blocking Stain's strikes. He was going to remain on the defensive as he knew he really could do a number on Stain.

"What arrogance, Pretender. Someone like you could never be the Symbol of Peace," Stain growled trying to land a few knives into Izuku.

Just to prove a point, Izuku allowed them to land. He pulled them out with telekinesis and the wounds healed in an instant. Stain did not miss this detail. Then Izuku really got cocked. A sword swipe had just graced his cheek.

Stain thought he had won. He licked up the blood of the pretender and fired off his quirk. Izuku had felt the paralysis take hold, but his super regeneration ate through the paralysis in a matter of a split second. This had him feigning being paralyzed.

"Not so mighty now, pretender? Except for that arrogance of yours you were a true hero," Stain admitted.

"I think you are confusing arrogance for confidence, Stain. Its a part of intimidating villains. Even All Might boasts to see if the villain's confidence can waiver. Its an excellent strategy to attempt to deescalate the situation," Izuku smirked.

Stain was speechless. This teen had more than enough qualifications to be a pro. "Oh well, I guess you were too weak to be a real hero," Stain stated bringing up his sword. The man came down with his blade.

Stain was too slow to reaction to Izuku. An elbow landed in Stain's gut and then the pummel from his telekinetic sword collided with Stain's face. Stain recoiled back and hit a wall. Izuku dispelled his sword.

"It was fun Stain, but I'm going to arrest you. Your quirk worked on me for a whopping 1 millisecond," Izuku stated reaching for Stain.

Stain tried to lash out but the telekinesis stopped him. Then Izuku felt a familiar blood lust. A hand came out from a void. Multi Force jumped out of the way dodging the hand. It was Shigaraki's hand.

"I'm sorry but not today," Stain lamented but stepped back into a portal. Then all at once nothing. They had used that small distraction to get Stain out of there. Izuku was beyond angry.

He stomped out of the alleyway to see Endeavor on the street battling it out with a black eyeless nomu. It was a fairer match than it should have been. Multi Force had swapped back to explosion. This was not the time to make things complicated with Todoroki.

After another hour of fighting, the pros had finally gotten all the fire and nomus under control. Multi Force and the other students were instructed to assist citizens. They were also told to stay out of the way. Iida was really beating himself up.

"Iida, I'm sorry I couldn't get Stain, but he was getting help by the League," Izuku apologized.

"I'm sorry I dragged all of you into this," Iida looked at Todoroki and Izuku.

"Don't be. Just don't do stupid stuff like that again," Todoroki scolded him.

"Iida, we're your friends and you should have just talked to us. I know he crippled your brother, but he will get his eventually," Izuku promised.

"Thanks, coming from you that means a lot," Iida admitted.

"Now chin up! We're god damn heroes in training! Let's start acting like it," Izuku scolded them.

Today Iida and Todoroki had one hell of a skirt with death. Later that evening they had to go down to the police station and make statements. Izuku had to stay a lot longer as he actually did the most and saw the most.

The next morning Iida and Todoroki were sitting in hospital beds. Izuku was visiting them. The chief of police came into the room. He had a dog head which Izuku thought was fitting for the chief of police. "Good evening gentleman," he said.

"Evening," Iida and Todoroki replied. Izuku waved.

"I was fortunate to have caught all of you in the same room, ruff," the chief stated.

Izuku looked at either of his friends, _Did he just ruff?Is no one going to address this?_ The chief continued, "I have some bad news for all of you. You all have two choices to make: one you can take credit for fighting Stain and we will reprimand you all or Endeavor can take the credit and no one will be the wiser."

"We did the right thing," Todoroki retorted.

Instead of the chief rebutted him Izuku spoke up, "That would make us no better than vigilantes. There's a reason we need licenses to be a hero. I personally vote for Endeavor route."

Todoroki snarled clearly disappointed. Iida hung his head, "I want to be known for it, but I agree with Midoriya. I've had a lot of time to reflect and clearly my actions were out of line. I know what I want to do."

Todoroki sighed, "Alright, I hate my old man, but I guess that's the better of the two options."

"Now that's settled," the man took off his hat and bowed, "The police thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Without you there the carnage could have been much worse, ruff."

_God damn it again!_ Izuku thought nodding at the sentiment. Iida broke and tears streamed. He nodded. "I don't know about them but I think that made it worth it," Todoroki commented.

The chief wasn't done as he stood up straight, "Just don't repeat this. I won't be able to save you scrutiny if you break the law a second time, ruff."

Izuku understood him, but the ruff was driving the young man crazy. After that the chief left them. "Did any else notice the ruffs?" Izuku asked the room.

"That's racist," Todoroki pointed out. Izuku burst out laughing from the monotone reply.

* * *

Drakonite227:

A nice long chapter. Went in a totally different direction than canon here. This will change the training ground attack. Hopefully, this was a satisfying direction to see the story to go in.

Also Izuku gets Endeavor's quirk will be brought up later by a few folks. He didn't get it on purpose and he's super pissed about it.


	22. Blue Day Off

The weekend after the end of internships came quick enough. Izuku was sitting on his bed looking back at the whole event. Stain and the League had taken the credit for the mayhem. Late Friday Stain had murdered another half dozen heroes and the press had got a chance to listen to him. Stain's disgusting policy was made public and it went viral. The community decided that Stain's ideology had _merit_ to it. A thought that bothered Izuku to his core. Sure it wasn't great that there were heroes only in it for the glory, but not everyone is selfless. Having competition in the form of greedy heroes meant that at least someone would be looking out for people. In this day and age that was more important than ever.

A knock at the door. His mother went to get it. Izuku's telekinetic range was around 30 meters now and it was detailed. He vowed to only pay attention to places that were his 'business'. It would not have been hard to spy on the neighbors or see who was at the door. Instead he was practicing his newest quirk.

In his palm was a red fire. Its size was completely dependent on his will. The amount of fire he could produce only seemed limited by his body's ability to internally dissipate the heat. Low temperature flames didn't bother him at all. If he focused the flame would turn a cool blue. This reduced the flame's size, but increased the temperature considerably. A large enough blue flame would start to imbalance his internal temperature.

Then power stockpile could be added to it. Going back to the red flame, if he applied stockpile now it would turn green. It had the same size and density as red, but the heat from blue. This green flame had little to no recoil. Then he went back to the red. With a second of focus the flame turned blue. At this point he applied stockpile. The color it choose now didn't make much sense to him. It was a royal purple and it was HOT. So hot that his own fire resistance didn't hold up to it. He'd have to measure the temps later at some point to see just how hot they were. If he had to guess the red was around 1300°C, blue & green were around 2100°C, and purple was about 4000°C. He doubted that much could withstand the purple flames. He couldn't even withstand them.

A familiar presence knocked on his door. Izuku clenched the flame extinguishing it. "Izuku, you have a guest!" his mother stated before the day handle twisted.

Izuku sat up to see Mei. She bolted over to him and embraced him. "I'm so glad you're okay," Mei stated straddling his lap and hugging him.

He patted her back, "What do you mean?"

"I heard that you were in Hosu the night of the Stain attack. I got so worried when you didn't text me Thursday or Friday!" Mei was holding him.

Izuku lightly laughed, "I think you forget who they're dealing with. I'm going to be the next Symbol of Peace. I won't let a madman like Stain get me."

She sniffed into his shoulder, "You better not."

"When have I ever been beaten?" Izuku gloated. The young man paused for a moment in thought. Something was off about him.

"The Sports Festival. Bakugo beat you until you stopped moving!" Mei pointed out. She pushed back and sat on his legs.

Izuku waved it off, "I was at 20%. There's no way he could beat me at 100%. Especially now!"

Mei rose an eyebrow and looked him over, "Are you okay? You seem more confident almost over confident?"

"I've never felt better! You're right, though. Its probably because I have this now," Izuku lifted up his right arm and it burst into flames. Mei jumped from the sudden fieriness.

"Is that Endeavor's quirk?!" Mei asked shocked. Her curiosity took her before he could answer. Her hand touched his arm and the flame did not burn. It was warm sure, but not burning or painful.

"It is. Cool, huh?" Izuku was grinning now.

"It looks awesome. How did you get it?" Mei wondered.

"That part I'm not proud of. Endeavor tricked me into taking it. Just so he could get some credit for my future accomplishments," Izuku admitted taking the smile from his face.

In her mind, Mei cursed the pro hero. "Chin up! My Symbol isn't going to phased by a little setback like that! As far as I think it was his lose to give his power to you. You're going to do more with it than he ever could," Mei pushed up his chin.

"Thank you. I worry about that whenever I get a new quirk," Izuku lamented.

"What are you up to now?" Mei asked.

"Explosion, Weak Telekinesis, Zoom, Power Stockpile x2, Force Nullification, Healing, Super Regeneration, Creation, and Hellflame," Izuku replied making a mental checklist of his abilities.

Mei was floored that was quite the list, "Stockpile x2?"

"That one is a secret," Izuku replied giving an apologetic look.

She huffed, "That's not good you know."

"Neither will this be if you stay on my lap any longer," Izuku smirked.

Mei blushed and fell back when she tried to get up. Not missing a beat he caught her and stood up with her. "You know this is an ever worse position," Mei was fiercely red now. He had a hand at the small of her back and another on her leg. Her legs were wrapped around his waist.

"It definitely is," Izuku replied kissing her. Her breath was taken away. For once he was being the aggressor. The influence of Izuku's quirk could not have been more obvious. He kissed her neck eliciting a moan from her.

A gnawing sensation at the back of her mind was creeping up. She pushed away saying, "No!" Izuku obliged and left her panting. This was not the way she wanted it. No less this new Izuku was almost too bold for her.

"You okay? Normally, the roles would be reversed," Izuku grinned.

"Put me down, please," Mei replied almost coldly. Izuku sighed but complied. He dropped her to the bed and for a moment hovered over her. She knew if he had pressed on right there her willpower would not have held out. He gave her some space. Flames rolled from shoulder to shoulder. Some of his fire also lit up, but it was green. The hair fire was almost solid in nature so it looked like highlights. Mei had to admit that he looked pretty badass at the moment.

"Sorry about that. Getting his quirk seems to have lowered my inhibitions and bolstered my confidence. Until that I didn't fully understand by how much," Izuku turned back to her, "I'm sorry. I almost overstepped a boundary."

"Don't be. If we had been in a different setting and after a different kind of day. Then I would have willingly gave in," Mei was still flustered. She either needed to blow off some steam or take a cold shower soon.

The green-haired teen slacked his shoulder and looked relieved to hear that. Then his phone vibrated. It was on the nightstand. The phone owner in question lifted the device to him with telekinesis. "Its a text message from Katsuki... Pool party?" Izuku rose an eyebrow and replied 'More details?'

Mei was hoping to spend the day with him, but after that display of affection she knew they needed to slow things down. As much as she hated to do anything physical it would be a good way to cool off, and have fun without increasing the sexual tension between themp. Or she hoped.

"We should go," Mei stated.

Izuku glance back to her, "Are you sure? I don't even... huh, its at UA."

"Good thing I always keep my badge on me," Mei grinned standing up.

"Right, because you don't sneak in when power-loader isn't around and tinker," Izuku sarcastically replied.

"Who me? No, I'd never do that," Mei retorted smirking. He ruffled her hair.

"Let's go then," Izuku grinned. They exited his room. "Hey, mom, we're going to go down to UA and meet up with some of our friends," Izuku stated seeing she was watching TV.

"Is UA even open? Its the weekend," Inko pointed out.

"According to Katsuki, they got special privilege to use the pool. Sounds like someone claimed it for the purpose of 'hero training'," Izuku made air quotes.

Inko chuckled, "Don't come crying back when you get in trouble. Have fun!" With his mother's approval, they were off. Thankfully, Izuku had managed to hide the fact that he had anything to do with Stain. Otherwise, she wouldn't be so easy to persuade.

Mei and Izuku walked down the street holding hands and being generally lovey-dovey. It was good to see, but sickening if you had to endure it for more than a few minutes. It took them about 30 minutes to get to UA. Uraraka had met them along the way. When they got to UA a few of the guys and gals were at the gate waiting for them.

"Wow, this really was Class 1-A's pool party huh?" Izuku chuckled seeing most of the class there.

"Shhh, this is hero training," Kaminari put a finger to his lips and winked.

"Are we still waiting for a few folks or are the rest ahead of us?" Izuku wondered seeing a few missing faces.

"This is pretty much it. Tokoyami, Aoyama, and Koda couldn't make it, but everyone else said they'd be here," Mineta spoke up.

Izuku nodded and walked off, "Come on, guys, let's get changed!"

A few people cheered and followed suit. Ashido whispered to Kirishima, "Isn't that Hatsume?"

"Yeah, it is," Kirishima whispered back.

"Do you think they're a couple?" Ashido whispered gasping in a joking manner.

"I'd say so look at that hand holding," Kirishima pointed out.

Izuku tuned out the murmurings. "I forgot to ask. Do you have a swimsuit, Mei?" Izuku looked over at her.

She blushed, "No, I don't. I skip out on gym class, so I've never had a need to bring one."

"I could make you one," Momo offered taking a few more steps to be right beside Mei. Being next to the beautiful, tall Momo was actually kind of intimidating for Mei. Worse when she knew there was some tension between her and Izuku.

"Sure," Mei replied smiling.

After a minute or two of walking through the enormous campus, the group got to the coveted pool. It was an Olympic size swimming pool. Izuku got changed with the rest of the guys. Even the mention of peeping on the girls earned swift vengeance from Izuku.

"I'm surprised you came, Todoroki-san," Izuku stated as Todoroki and him exited.

"I think it will be a nice break from all the action and training," Todoroki replied smirking a bit.

"Good to hear. Its nice to see you break from your shell and socialize," Izuku stated. That came out of nowhere.

"You sound like my father," Todoroki chuckled.

Izuku nervously chuckled back, "About that... You know what it can wait. Let's just enjoy today. I'll tell you if you remind me before we all go our separate ways."

"Alright! As much as this is supposed to be fun. We still need to stretch! Huddle up and let's limber up," Iida shouted once everyone was out. The guys all had shorts of varying degrees of colors and lengths. The more bold of the men wore short shorts while the rest had just over knee length shorts. The girls were more widely varied. The petite girls were a blend of bikini and one piece. While the more endowed girls barring Mei wore bikini's.

"Its like a trip to the beach," Mineta drooled. A quick glare from Izuku cut that line of thought. They all followed Iida's advice to a degree. Mei was feeling the most out of place no knowing what stretches to do. Izuku stopped mid stretch and helped her through it. The stretching alone left her sore-ish.

"How about a race?" Katsuki smirked looking at the five lanes for competition swimming.

Iida put his hand to his chin, "That's not a bad idea."

"Except, one rule: you have to actually swim across. No flying across the water or gliding on it," Izuku glared at both Katsuki and Todoroki.

"What? Why are you looking at me? I don't even need that to win," Katsuki scoffed.

"Uhhuh, still its more fair that way," Izuku replied earning a few nods from the rest of the class.

"Furthermore if you don't want to compete you don't have to," Iida added noticing a few guys and girls not really into the idea. This more or less made everyone happy.

Naturally, most of class 1-A was going to participate. The only ones that decided to stay out of it were Mineta, Jirou, Mei, and Hagakure. They knew how to swim, but they didn't think they had a chance against the other juggernauts.

Up to bat first was Kirishima, Sero, Kaminari, Ashido, and Ojiro. The normal folks more or less compared to the other 9 participants. Someone had procured a white board and markers, well made. Izuku and Momo were in charge of getting timings. Mei was voted as the one to do the start signal. The rules were made that 3 laps had to be completed, quirks were legal, and every contestant had to finish.

"Ready. Set! GO!" Mei shouted. The five contestants shot off their stands. Ojiro was in the lead followed closely by Kirishima. Ashido was next with Sero trailing her. The human stun gun was in dead last. Ashido was getting her rhythm done and past Kirishima. Ojiro had to go all in against the natural swimmer Ashido.

In no time everyone but Kaminari were on their last lap. The was determined to at least slow them down. Electricity sparked from him. Ojiro and Ashido noticed right away. Kirishima hardened sinking to the bottom. Sero shot out a tape line to the finish. In a flash a huge amount electricity exploded across the water. Thankfully, with him being so far away a lot of the electricity dissipated from traveling. But not all of it about 100k volts hit everyone still in the water.

Ojiro was the most unlucky. Ashido created a thin layer around her of extremely viscous acid that dramatically increased her electrical resistance. The pH of the acid was basically that of pure water. Kirishima's hardened form was basically resistance to electricity. Sero had just gotten out of the pool by the time the shock exploded. Ojiro despite being shocked still managed to tap the end before the paralysis kicked in fully.

"That was nasty. But well played," Izuku commented pulling Ojiro out of the water.

"Yeah out of nowhere Sero-san won the round," Momo stated showing him her phone.

"Nice, that's close," Izuku tapped his phone one more time when Kaminari finally got to the end.

The two of them wrote down the times on the provided whiteboard. Momo and Izuku seemed pretty close in general. The next five got called up. Momo, Sato, Shoji, Uraraka, and Iida stepped up next. Izuku motioned for Mei to join him so they could get the times.

"Ready. Set! GO!" Mei shouted again. Sato and Shoji launched themselves into the pool. They both got halfway before crashing into the water. Uraraka and Izuku made eye contact. Izuku shook his head 'No'. Mei was likely the only other person to notice. She sighed and placed fingers on her arm. With a single empowered kick she soared through the water. Not only did she catch to the two guys she overtook them. Between Uraraka and Izuku they had found out how to apply only a portion of her Force Nullification. Each finger was 20% application.

Iida took a deep breath and activated recripro burst in one leg. He caught up to Uraraka in an instant and then started to lag behind. Momo had started off the weakest, but gained on everyone. She had made flippers and changed her bikini into a skin tight suit.

The competition between them all had been fairly close. Uraraka had gained a commanding lead with Momo hot on her tail. In the end, Uraraka had beaten out Momo by 1 second. "Nice, all that's training finally paying off," Izuku commented helping both Momo and Uraraka out of the water.

"Compared to what you make me run through this qualifies as a warm-up," Uraraka shrugged.

"Everyone else, good work so far. I think a few of us have really improved since we got here," Izuku stated jotting down a few more times. Izuku handed his phone off to Momo.

The next four got up on the stands. Izuku, Katsuki, Todoroki, and Asui looked at one another. Izuku and Katsuki were grinning like madmen. Todoroki only looked ahead. Asui smiled.

"Ready. Set! GO!" Mei shouted. Izuku and Katsuki _blasted_ into the water at maximum velocity. Asui was ridiculously fast in the water, but that was a given. Katsuki's explosions didn't work in water. Izuku could still use his, but explosions underwater wasn't the best of ideas. Instead he used a tactic similar to Uraraka except with telekinetic propulsion. Todoroki had turned his lane into a slid of ice. While that wasn't technically against the rule. It definitely felt like it.

To say the least the four of them were among the fastest. Izuku was like a torpedo soaring through the water. Katsuki rhythm was basically perfect. Asui was hot on Izuku's tail. Todoroki was just on par with Katsuki.

The competition ended with Izuku, Asui by a 1 second, Katsuki 4 seconds later, and Todoroki 4.3 second later. They were the fastest times by a longshot. Fast enough that it looked like everyone else had done an extra lap. An unfamiliar clap came from the sidelines.

Aizawa had been watching the last two matches. "Here I thought you guys would be slacking off," He remarked eyeing the whiteboard, "You're even keeping track of times. Looks like a few of you have really improved since day one."

"It was Iida's idea that we should do this competition," Izuku nudged Iida.

"Ah, yes, I thought this would be a friendly yet important competition," Iida replied.

The whole class was tense seeing Aizawa. "Continue then. I'm just going to go sleep in the supply closet. As long as no one gets hurts I don't care what you guys do," Aizawa stated walking away.

Izuku rolled his eyes. That was a great moment for some kind of inspirational speech, but Aizawa just whiffed it. This was kind of expected, but some how Aizawa would bring up your hopes he would say something wise, but then dash that feeling and just go to sleep.

"Let's get out the volleyball net!" Ashido shouted running off to the storage house. A few of the guys volunteered to help.

"Izuku, what was that about training?" Mei asked him when the rest of the class had gone to help out Ashido.

"I do lessons with Uraraka, Tuesday and Thursday. I help her out with her quirk. Then on Monday and Wednesday I train with Yaoyorozu. That one is more combat training for me, but she uses it as an opportunity to fight other people's quirks. Win win for us both," Izuku replied watching the rest of the class.

He decided to abstain from the sport under the grounds that he'd be too OP. A fact that most of them were relieved to hear. "So you spend your weeknights with Yaoyorozu and Uraraka. Do you ever talk about anything serious?" Mei wondered.

He could see it she was feeling a bit insecure. "They're like any guy friend I would have. They're also heroes. Our topics are just as scattered as we are as individuals," Izuku assured her.

"I know. I just want to spend more time with my boyfriend. I kind of miss seeing you everyday and doing projects together," Mei admitted. That one hurt. Izuku felt that one like a punch to the gut. He had been overly busy lately.

"I'm sorry. I'll try to do better," Izuku put a hand on her shoulder.

"I know," Mei replied finding a spot to sit down to watch. The rest of the afternoon was fun and games.

The group of students were leaving for the day. Aizawa was up for once. He was a night owl after all. Todoroki stopped Izuku before he could leave. "You had something you wanted to talk to me about?" Todoroki stated. He was blunt as ever.

"Yeah, let's get away. This might piss you off," Izuku said walking them off to a secluded corner.

"What is it?" Todoroki wondered crossing his arms.

"This is the problem," Izuku switched on Hellflame and it ignited his hair. Well part of it anyway.

The importance of the fire did not get lost on Todoroki. The teen was just searching for the right words. Izuku beat him to it, "I didn't ask for it."

"What?" Todoroki harsh voice replied.

"It was underhanded and I was tricked," Izuku plainly shrugged.

"Tricked? How? You can sense people 20 meters away?!" Todoroki was a bit angry. He had a right to be. It might be a bit misplaced in Izuku, but if not to vent to Izuku then who else.

"Well, at first I was suspicious as I normally am. Then he talked to me everyday until I was comfortable around him. I let down my guard. The night we fought Stain. I had rejected him 30 minutes prior to that. He got me when he was patting my back," Izuku sighed knowing just how pathetic that sounded.

"Damnit, I knew he'd try something like that. I should have warned you," Todoroki slammed his fist into a wall.

"Well, I can't do much about it now. I've decided to master it and do some cool stuff with it instead," Izuku made the Hellblade. The blade coasted through concrete like it was butter.

"I'll admit that's pretty cool, but aren't you going to do anything?" Todoroki wanted some recourse maybe a bit of revenge.

Izuku wasn't having any of that, "He's just a stepping stone for me. Regardless, if he claims he trained me. I have a whole range of abilities he can't take credit for and! The best part is I can appeal to his fan by thanking him."

Todoroki put his hand to his chin to think about it. "Your a madman, but that could work," Todoroki nodded.

"I will work. Otherwise I couldn't be the Symbol of Peace," Izuku stated before beckoning the white and red-haired teen, "Let's get out of here. How about today you tell your old man thanks for the power. That should mess with him for a week or two." Izuku chuckled getting a smirk from Todoroki.

They promptly left after that and thankfully before Aizawa had to discipline them.

This was one of the best days they were going to get in a long while. Aizawa was going to make sure of that. Most of the class just walked home together. They were all laughing together and playfully joking around. Even hardasses like Katsuki joined and made the occasional quip. By the time they all had to go their separate ways the Symbol of Peace line group was now basically everyone.

Izuku and Mei were walking home. To his home, but she was spending the night. She was spending the whole week at his abode actually. "How was hanging out with class 1-A?" Izuku asked her.

"It was great. You guys are a lot more talkative than what I'm used to," Mei replied.

"That's to be expected. You're classmates aren't the talking types. You guys work your ass off all the time," Izuku stated.

"More like we're putting out fires and competing for resources," Mei chuckled.

"Oh so more of the same?" Izuku chuckled too.

"At least we started our fires. You guys just have to show up afterwards," Mei poked fun at Izuku.

"That's not better!" they burst out laughing.

"Mom, we're home," Izuku called out after opening the door.

"Welcome home! How was the pool party?" she asked from the kitchen. He hadn't texted her in advance. She just had some kind of precognition.

"It was fun. Had a few good talks," Izuku replied kicking off his shoes.

"Oh yeah, what kind of talks?" Inko asked.

"Had to chat with Todoroki about getting his dad's quirk. I was hoping to smooth out things before we had any misunderstandings," Izuku walked past and noted she was only half done.

"You didn't tell me about that," Inko stated glancing over her shoulder.

"I didn't want to jump the gun get your hopes up before it was approved," Izuku replied.

"Approved by who?" Inko asked back.

"Todoroki," Mei chimed in, "He was afraid of Todoroki hating him for it. From the looks of him, I'd say that they came up with a good plan to mess with him."

"Ooh, that sounds interesting. You'll have to tell us," Inko suggested.

"Only because you both asked so nicely," Izuku grinned. Mei tugged on his cheek. "What?" Izuku retorted.

"Someone's got to reign in that confidence of yours," Mei smirked.

The rest of the evening was almost a textbook family dinner. Barring the fact Izuku didn't have a father. A cool chill ran down spine. Izuku had been feeling like a pair of eyes had been watching him for the last few weeks. Which would have been ironic all things considering.

* * *

Drakonite227:

Some much needed character development. Next will be the rescue op where everyone gets to show off, especially Uraraka. Beyond that we have the Semester Exams. I'm only going to make a small tweak to them. Otherwise the rest will be canon.

The Forest Training Arc will be different. Shigaraki is going to have more members. The atmosphere of the whole event will be much darker and a few people will have to step up that didn't in canon. Unfortunately, for our heroes my Shigaraki is more cunning and genre savvy. But worry not that's about 9 to 10 chapters from here.


	23. Exam Preparations

It was time for the hero training portion of the day. Izuku was lazily looking out the window. He had really no interest today for some reason. Aizawa came into the class. "I've got some important news this week," Aizawa started with, "As all of you may now summer break is coming up. Which can only mean one thing: exams are this Friday. Just to bring up your spirits and hopefully make a few of you improve your grade, we've planned a forest lodge over the break."

The class burst out cheering. Except for Izuku and Katsuki, Izuku was a naturally suspicious. Katsuki just didn't give a damn. The green-haired teen knew his grades were good. He was pretty sure that anything the teachers could throw at him would be easy enough.

All Might came into the class wearing his silver age costume. Just like before. "Afternoon class!" he stated Aizawa moved off to the side, "Today we will be doing Rescue Training in an industrial environment!"

The class calmed done. All Might continued, "Get dressed and let's get out to Ground Alpha!"

Everyone got up and took their hero suitcase with them. They all got the bus to get to Ground Alpha. Todoroki had changed his hero costume to a blue and white jumpsuit. Not many else had changed their costume. Then he saw Uraraka. Her outfit had been altered substantially.

The pressure points that had been all over her outfit were gone. Her pink skin tight suit was still mostly pink, but had a few black stripes on it. Her boots were much thicker than normal. Her gloves were the same. Both her gloves and greaves extended just past her elbow and knee. They weren't spiked to extremely extent like a villain but they would hurt if you got hit by them.

"Holy crap, Uraraka, that's a nice looking upgrade," Izuku pointed out. She blushed and rubbed the back of her neck.

"These were some of the upgrades you recommended. Feels pretty good with my new strength," Uraraka clenched her fist. The gauntlets were plated upon closer inspection. Izuku walked up to her. Nonchalantly he took her hand and looked it over. He didn't think much of it, but she was blushing madly.

"Mei's work. Carbon fiber plating and lining," Izuku was checking the handiwork. She calmed down from that observation.

The class ascended to the top of a tower. They were looking over an industrial park. "At the other end of this park is the victim. Who ever can get there the quickest will be the winner," All Might explained.

"This kind of place is my specialty," Sero commented.

"Tch, what are you taking about I'll just fly there," Izuku scoffed.

"Except, that will be barred. Your fly height will be restricted to the tower's height," All Might stated and then cleared his throat, "Begin!"

\- Uraraka's Perspective -

One For All flowed through her. She had pushed the Zero Coat to 7% power output. After touching her face with 4 fingers. Everyone else had left her in the dust. "All Might, I should show them, huh?" Ochako looked up to her mentor.

"I'd like to see as well! Give them hell," All Might gave her a thumbs up. Her armor expanded slightly from her muscles expanding. She burst from the platform kicking up dust. The pipes flew past her as she leapt and jumped from pipe to ledge. Ochako shot past fellow student after student. They all gave her a surprised look as she past them and then disappeared from sight.

Ashido had been weaving in and out of pipes. She on the ground level along with Sato and Kaminari. Granted she had left them in the dust. Todoroki was ahead of her skating along his ice. He glanced in her direction only to see her pass him. Seeing his raised eyebrow was worth the upgrade.

Bakugo was the next person she past. He was less pleasant about it compared to the rest. Yaoyorozu was the next person somehow keeping a lead over Bakugo. She nearly dropped her jaw seeing the speed and acrobatics that Uraraka had. But she also had this knowing look like she knew more than she should.

Sero had cleared more than half the industrial park by the time she caught up to him. Ochako kept pace with him. "Sero! How far ahead is Midoriya?" she shouted asking him as they weaved in and around pipes and smoke towers.

"I lost him nearly immediately! He's flying and just weaving in and out of the this maze!" Sero replied.

She clicked her tongue. Ochako waved to him before exploding past him. The maze of the industrial park got more and more dense as they continued.

Her ability to parkour was the number one skill she had to learn. In this training it had paid off massively. Her new found strength allowed her to wall jump like a video game character. She was like a ping pong ball bouncing from pipe to wall.

Then the maze opened up. Izuku was standing near the 'victim'. Ochako sighed. She didn't think she had any hopes of beating him, but it was worth a try. The brunette skidded to halt near him. "How long have you been waiting?" Ochako asked him.

"About 30 seconds. I would have been here quicker if not for the parameters of the exercise," Izuku shrugged.

Ochako glared at him. _30 Seconds, eh? I could have gapped that_, she thought stretching. "Since we have some time to kill. I've been thinking about enhancing my core," Ochako commented feeling her stomach. Ever since she had gotten One For All all she could think about was how best to use it, how best to train it, and how best to improve it. If she wasn't training with All Might and Izuku she was out jogging or weight lifting. Somehow this quirk had turned her into a health nut. No one was complaining, but a few people had noticed the change in her. Ochako also found that her determination had improved 10 fold and it was hard to just be casual now.

Izuku rose an eyebrow, "I'd say physically it would be hard to improve much more." He blushed, "You're ah, physique is quite impressive already."

That was new. It was usually her that blushed at his random innocent gestures. Those were just misunderstandings, but this was on purpose. It wasn't like her to think like Ashido. Ochako dismissed the playful thoughts. She went back to serious mode, "What would you suggest then?"

"I'm not sure how your quirk works compared to the two I have, but I'd say keeping it online longer would be the most impactful thing you could do," Izuku answered vague enough if anyone heard it wouldn't make sense.

"Online longer? Like keep this up all the time?" Ochako asked feeling the power flow through her.

"Yeah, think about. How do astronauts train?" Izuku replied putting her into thought mode.

"Hmm, they train for the extreme conditions by putting their bodies through it over and over again until they acclimate...!" It dawned on her what he was getting at. "So if he keep it on all the time my body will get used to it eventually," Ochako reasoned dreading just how tired that would make her.

The most before was around 20 minutes. So going for hours was another story. It was doable though. Quirks are physical powers, so it would stand to reason acclimating the body alone would increase her tolerance and power considerably.

"Now you're thinking. That's more or less how I've pushed my quirks ever since I've had them. Unlike the rest of them, my quirks don't level up with me as I age. They stagnant unless I put in the hard work," Izuku commented.

"I'm sure the hard everyone has put in makes a huge difference," Ochako defended.

"That's the only thing separating us from the normal folks. If not for training our bodies and quirk we'd naturally fall behind the villains," Izuku stated as Sero dropped into the room.

"Holy crap, Uraraka! Where did that come from?" Sero wondered smiling like he usually does.

Ochako nervously laughed, "Oh you know. Just found a new way to use my quirk."

"That's awesome! You are like negative all but a small portion of your gravity or is all that strength training paying off?" Sero guessed. Uraraka let out a relieved sigh.

"Yeah, I can push my gravity down to 10% and with the extra muscle I can almost fly through the air. It's like I'm on the moon!" Uraraka gushed half true half fake.

"10%?! You'd weigh like 9kg (20lbs)!" Sero was just floored by that thought.

"Yeah around there. It gives my jumps about 10 times potency. Can't use it much to fight, but its great for moving around so quickly," Ochako smiled at him.

Sero huffed, "Man, everyone in the class just improves so quickly. Its gunna be hard to keep up." He hung his head a bit low.

Izuku chimed in, "Hey, don't beat yourself up so much. You'll just have to try even harder to keep up with us. But I'm sure you're not the only one feeling the pressure."

"That's rich coming from you, Midoriya," Sero retorted. Izuku glared but remained silent. Todoroki and Bakugo came in at nearly the same time.

The blonde haired teen grinned continuing what probably was a conversation they had racing, "Icy Hot that shit was real nasty!"

The other teen shrugged, "I don't know what you're talking about. I was merely securing the area."

The blonde teen scoffed seeing Izuku. Ochako had been under the impression they were good friends. That look on Bakugo was not a look a friend should have.

A few more fellow heroes in training came into the room. Ochako noticed a tense atmosphere between the class and Izuku. The green-haired teen in question distanced himself naturally. Those that knew they weren't the top dogs didn't mind him. But those that had any kind of ego basically hated him. Ochako might have fallen into that category if not for getting to know him. Her own power boost seemed to even the playing field between them.

If she continued to grow at a constant rate, she would leave Izuku in the dust at some point. That is if he continued to have the same quirks. His growth with them was slower than most after all. He had to rely on the concept of synergy.

After another 5 minutes everyone in class had made it to the rescue location. "Bravo class! That's was fine work using your quirks the best you could to navigate this maze," All Might declared.

"Since all of you are dying to know. We've broken the Semester Final exam into two components: One part practical exam and the other part written exam. Everything you've learned this semester will be tested," Aizawa stated from above them.

"Ah, I'm not prepared for that at all!" Kaminari complained.

"Neither am I!" Hagakure shouted waving around her hands.

A few more people spoke up voicing their complaints. Yaoyorozu being the generous person she was spoke up, "If anyone wants to be tutored I'll be more than happy to help out the class."

She was like their savior. Kaminari and Ashido jumped at the chance immediately. Asui, Satou, Jirou, and Ojiro also expressed interest. Ochako thought about taking up her offer, but Izuku caught her eye.

"The rest of class with be dedicated to studying and if you're sure of your mental aptitude then we could be persuaded to allow you to go to the gym for the rest of class," Aizawa offered grinning.

"Hey, Bakubro! You've almost got the best grades in class. I think if anybody could help me study it would be you," Kirishima patted Bakugo's back.

"Oh, yeah, are you saying it'll be tough, numb skull?" Bakugo retorted in what a few would say was actually friendly.

"Of course, I got a head like a box of rocks. Unless you're not up to the challenge," Kirishima smirked. It seemed that Kirishima already had a pretty good read of Bakugo.

"Fine. Just don't wimp out on me when I drill the knowledge into ya," Bakugo punched Kirishima's arm.

During the height of the commotion and people forming study groups one person stood out to her. Izuku had walked up to All Might and whispered something to him. Iida and Todoroki seemed to be the only other two that noticed. The pro hero nodded and Izuku quietly left. Ochako was probably the only person that knew where he was going. He was going to go to Ground Omega.

Yaoyorozu caught Ochako by surprise, "Uraraka, why don't you join us?" For a moment she panicked.

"N-no, thanks. I'm good. I'm going to see about that gym pass actually," Ochako replied walking up to All Might.

"Uraraka, are you looking for a 'gym' pass as well?" All Might asked emphasizing gym. She nodded and he handed her a 'Class 1-A' Hall pass. "Just be careful not to strain yourself too much!" All Might laughed playing off the request as innocently as possible.

Ochako bowed and ran off. She waved to a few people that noticed her. "Was that suspicious to anyone else," Kaminari stated watching her run off.

"Yeah, its like she's going after Midoriya," Ashido grinned, "What do you think Yaomomo?" The pink girl nudged Yaoyorozu.

Yaoyorozu glared at Ochako, "I think I'll stay out of it. Whatever is going on its clearly private."

Ashido sighed, "Its not like he saved you twice or anything. I'm just saying if I was interested in a guy I would go for it."

Yaoyorozu turned away blushing from the thought. "Its not like that. I think he's a great guy, but not someone I should pursue," Yaoyorozu steeled her nerves.

\- Ground Omega -

Izuku stood in the center of the broken training ground. He ignited his fire to his maximum. The drain on his stockpile was pretty low to run the purple flames. But his internal body temperature reached critical levels in about 3 minutes. Even before that point super regeneration kicked in. Running the full three minutes would drain his stamina to near zero and threaten his life. Making just a purple Hellblade was no better. The time limit was higher at around 12 minutes, but still not something he could rely on.

The footsteps of around entered the training ground. It was tough to tell who it was since they were just beyond his sensory range. If not for Izuku trying to recover his stamina he'd just look. The ground around him had been reduced to magma.

"I knew you'd be here," the person stated. It was Uraraka.

"What are you doing here? I thought you'd go study or take up Momo's offer," Izuku used a red Hellblade to stand up. He stagger backed sinking his foot into the magma. Thanks to his heat resistance the magma was just uncomfortable. If he lingered to long it would burn. The green-haired teen righted himself and stepped out of his circle of molten rock.

"I'm worried about you," Uraraka admitted. The reaction Izuku gave was unexpected: he scoffed.

"I get the feeling that folks in the class didn't like me much. I really have no reason to get to know them much outside of their quirks," he shrugged dispelling his long sword.

"That's not a very heroic way to handle it," Uraraka pointed out taking a few steps towards him.

"It might not be, but I have to work what I'm given," Izuku put up his arms in the most uncaring way possible.

"Bakugo would be ashamed to see you like this! Where's all that heroic spirit you had when you came here to be a hero?" Uraraka was getting a bit angry with him. Not a bit he mused, more like one more thing could set her off.

"I just understand it better than anyone," Izuku nonchalantly explained, "This right now. Doesn't matter much. The recent event made me realize this. I feel ready, but I've got to get through these three years. So I decided that making friends wasn't worth it." Their was a cold, calculated undertone to his voice. Deep down this was his facade. Izuku even after showing what he could do. He would never be accepted. That was his truth. His absolute strength and the way he just destroyed challenges made people resent him. Instead of fighting through that resentment, he figured it would be easier tolerating his colleagues.

Again deep down this betray what he really wanted. But it was like he was sinking and there was no way for him to swim to the surface. It would be better to accept his inevitable fate.

This response was not to Uraraka's liking. Activating her Zero Coat she shot off at him. He had but a second to react. Using his Full Power stated he blocked the first strike. Her strength rattled his core. The shockwave alone from their clash whipped debris away from them. "If that's the best excuse you can muster than I'll just drag you back down from that high horse," Uraraka stated her voice monotone.

"Oh, so All Might's chosen, thinks she can take me down?" Izuku retorted applying his second Full Power to his body.

It was his turned to counter. He threw her back. She skidded across the ground coming to a stop around 5m (16ft) from him. He lunged from his spot and the ground cracked. This pushed the ground into a spiky pattern. Izuku aimed for her stomach.

Uraraka was much faster than Izuku had thought. This was made apparent when she sidestepped him and grabbed his wrist. She pulled him through and almost took his shoulder out of the socket. A hand was placed on his shoulder blade and then his vision meet ground. His chest was nearly an inch into the ground.

That hurt. She was on one knee. Her hand was firmly planted into his shoulder. The other hand was holding his arm above him. It was being wretched at an unnatural angle too. He tried to push up but she was MUCH stronger than him. He got up an inch before she slammed him back into the ground. Now he was 3 inches into the pavement. And more pain.

Endeavor's quirk it is. His body lit on fire and flames spewed from him. Uraraka leapt away and then kicked off the wall. She landed somewhere near the center of the training ground. The inferno man stood up slowly. His body ached from the damage.

His flames turned green. With a single motion of his arm a wave of fire flew at her. Uraraka frowned and then extended out on hand. She held back with one finger her thumb. Then she let it go and the 100% force exploded from her finger.

In a split second Izuku swapped to explosion and leveled a large blast at her. Their powers more or less canceled out. For a moment, Izuku just stood in awe of her. If this was just the beginning of her strength he shuttered to think what she was capable of.

However, she now had a broken finger and one less ammo to aim at him. He could keep her at bay with his fire and use his explosion to counter her ranged attacks. The only route for her to take caused recoil, but it would be the most effective.

Uraraka clenched her fist and winced. Izuku clicked his tongue, of course she'd pick that one. The green-haired teen erupted in flames and made his Hellblade. All green would do. No reason to eat his stamina so early.

She bursted off the ground and came at him like a bullet. Somewhere along the line she had applied her quirk to her person. He had to get his quirk onto her so he could deactivate both of them. The hard part was landing a clean hit.

After spending some time with Ojiro he understood that martial artists that were slower than their opponent had to compensate. They usually compensated by neutralizing the opponent's advantage. Or in the more advanced case predict your opponent. Knowing the muscle groups and common attacks went a long way to predicting someone's movements.

He focused his telekinetic sensing. Her right arm tensed, muscles contradicted. Izuku sidestepped the right punch. She was wide open. His blade was too close to connect correctly. His left hand couldn't do much as she was physically stronger than him. He opted for a psychic punch. He hit her in the stomach with his maximum force. That was more or less the equivalent to getting haymaker-ed by a world class heavyweight boxer.

The split second the psychic attack was made his sensory field was deactivated. It fired back up the instant the attack was over. It was a bit late though. Uraraka had just forced herself through the pain. She had taken a slight step back and jabbed with her other fist. The quick hit connected.

It was like getting punched by a brick. Another attack was already being primed. A right hook swung around. Izuku brought up his sword. Her fist connected with the flat of his blade. She recoiled instantly from the burning pain. The seemed to be no insulation in her suit. He swung his sword.

Uraraka jumped back getting nicked by the blade. Her clothing got the worst of it. From right collar to left hip her hero costume had a cut in it. The cloth burned a bit revealing more. She was not distracted by this, but Izuku was.

The heroine went back on the offensive. She came in for a roundhouse kick. He ducked the kick and swung the swords upwards. Uraraka palmed the flat of the sword. This cracked the sword and nearly disarmed him.

He dropped the sword intentionally. Izuku came back with a right hook. Uraraka blocked the hook and connected another blow to his face. He reeled back and picked up his blade with telekinesis. Explosion was toggled on. His left hand come out and a 70% explosion was released. She braced for impact.

The explosion knocked her some 8m (26ft) away. Her armor had survived but her clothes weren't as lucky. Her bra was showing through on her top and only the right side of her costume had survived. The left from shoulder to hip was gone.

He held up his blade. If for any reason it broke it would exploded fire everywhere. He put up his other hand behind the blade. Uraraka had a wide eyed expression. She wound up a full power punch. A literal wall of ice interrupted both of them.

Izuku was just confused. But only one person could have done that, "How did you find this place?"

"I just kept following the sounds of battle. You guys really got heated," Todoroki stated stepping into the training ground.

The melted revealing Uraraka. Todoroki just blankly stared. He blinked a few times and looked away. "You might want to get your costume repaired," Todoroki pointed to his chest. Uraraka looked down and got red in the face. She let go of her fist.

"T-thanks, I should get going. Midoriya, this isn't done between us," Uraraka sort of threatened. She bowed to Todoroki and quickly walked off.

Todoroki waited until she left to say anything. He looked around. The training ground really was in disrepair. From the looks of it Izuku had been using the training ground to practice his powers without hurting anyone.

"What was that?" he asked walking around the training ground.

Izuku rubbed the bridge of his nose, "I don't know. I guess she was trying to not some sense into me."

"Do you need some sense knocked into you?" Todoroki glanced at him with a raised eyebrow.

"I might. I don't get along with most of the class and I guess my attitude was pissing her off," Izuku shrugged dispelling his blade.

"I could see that. I wouldn't say I get along with everyone perfectly either," Todoroki admitted.

"Most of them can rationalize your strength and quirk. I'm just a bigger unknown. No less I can just get more powerful by gaining more quirks," Izuku reasoned.

"Except based on the way you act around others I'd wager you don't want more quirks. I don't know exactly how it works, but I'd imagine it would be like learning to walk again," Todoroki had a hand to his chin, "Otherwise you won't have been angry about getting my father's quirk."

"When I first got here. I figured you and Yaoyorozu would be the most dangerous. Barring Bakugo I could tell that you two would be my only competition," Izuku chuckled.

"I should feel flattered, but that almost feels threatening," Todoroki stated glaring at Izuku.

The green-haired teen just burst out laughing. The super serious expression from Todoroki just cracked him up. "Ahh, you know you're the second person today that's said that," Izuku's tone dropped and he got serious, "I must sound like a villain, huh?"

"Not yet, but if you don't confront that feeling of superiority you have. You will be," Todoroki retorted walking past Izuku. That hurt, but it was true. The dual colored teen left Izuku be. Anger boiled up and over. He was pissed at himself. He was angry at all those around him. His quirk control was slipping. The conflict of self versus quirk reared its head. Was his quirk changing him too much? Was he doomed to be cursed?

Purple flame coursed from his right fist. Muscles expanded. In a fit of anger he punched the ground. The whole area around him turned to molten stone and metal. He was on his knees. Izuku looked to the heavens and screamed.

* * *

Drakonite227:

Izuku quirk puts a considerable mental toll on him. He hasn't needed to deal with the imprinting before, but now with so many quirks its apparent he's going have to do something. That something wouldn't until we get to the Summer Training Ground arc.

If this feels really out of character for anyone, its _supposed_ to be. His body doesn't acclimate the same other people do with their quirks. His base quirk is more or less mentally, emotionally, and physically involved. Most just have to deal with the physical aspects of their quirk. Some have deal with mental or emotional problems. But nothing like what his does.

So if anyone is wondering this is going to bring up some crazier moments later. I might even play around with the idea of split personality disorder.


	24. Semester Exam - Part 1

Izuku ever since his break down had been spending an inordinate amount of time in his head. The first and most obvious question was: why? His mental state had never really been that fragile or disorderly. But the words that Uraraka leveled at him _really_ got under his skin. He didn't know if that was because of his actions or words. The next thought that he kept circling to was: how. How had he grown in a way that pissed her off? It might be the influence of his quirk, but the way he acted _felt_ natural.

Maybe this feeling wasn't as natural as his quirk lead him to believe. Mei had pointed it out first. She was usually spot on about these things. To her he was more forward and brash. Izuku would like to believe he was always like that, but his memories didn't line up with that. He was confident when it mattered and if he had reason to be. But women were his weakness and so was people vastly stronger than him. Except he didn't feel that anymore.

Somewhere along the line he had got Bravery. Which in some games was a spell that increase attack power. In real life, bravery meant to be immune to fear. Whereas courage was overcoming fear, but still possessing it. This bravery was his cockiness and power swirling into one. No matter how he tried he slipped back into it. Every mental conversation could start out humbly confident and then end up elitist overconfidence.

That raised a different concern for Izuku. His emotional state was also fluctuating like crazy. Just being supportive and playful around Mei became a task. His pride would get in the way of them enjoying themselves. Or worse he would push the envelope and she would push away. _It wasn't his fault she was flirty after all._ That wasn't the right train of thought either. It was too easy to justify his actions in any circumstance.

Back in the world of mortals, class had begun. He was just looking out the window blankly. Aizawa was doing attendance like he always did every morning. Apparently, he had only called out Midoriya's name three times. Katsuki turned around in his seat and promptly smacked Izuku.

The slight pain kicked him back into reality, "Huh? Oh, here." He glanced around the room. A few of his classmates looked concerned while many more sighed a little. After a few minutes attendance was over. Katsuki was still half turned in his seat.

"What the hell?" he whispered.

"Just a few quirk problems," Izuku whispered back.

Katsuki grinned, "Just make sure you remember that I'm going to beat you this time for real."

"Tch, as if. I'll smoke you on both parts," Izuku grinned back.

"We'll see about that. I'm not the one that didn't study all week," Katsuki retorted. The blonde turned back around.

Izuku made another 'Tch'. Before zoning back into Aizawa.

"As you all know today is the day of the Semester Final Exam. This will be two parts: one written and one practical. You all will be doing the written part first. You'll have 2 hours to finish and then we're sending you all out to lunch early," Aizawa explained. At some point a skyscraper of a stack of paper was next to him. It came up to the man's waist. Izuku paled a bit that was a thick test.

Aizawa handed off stacks to the front row. "Don't open it up until I give the go ahead," The man stated.

The green-haired teen got his packet and just panicked a bit. It was 40 pages thick and had a cover page to prevent any kid of cheating. After looking around the class more than a few people shared his sentiment about the test.

"Begin!" Aizawa stated tapping the timer on his phone. All reservation about the test flew out the window for Izuku. His first order of business was to determine what the tests purpose was. The answers requested were in multiple forms. There was also every subject in the packet. The questions ranged from easier to harder and it had a good blend of each subject as the packet progressed. The deep questions were clearly outside of what they had learned in class. Izuku concluded this was just to test where everyone was. That meant there was a cut off cut for completion decreed by the teachers before hand. That meant that completion and accuracy was more important than getting the furthest.

A few of the other students surmised the same conclusion while others were either buckling or just answering easy questions and skipping what they didn't know.

Two hours had past in the blink of an eye. No one had finished early as that wasn't meant to be possible. Izuku felt pretty satisfied getting through about half the packet before cherry picking questions that he could answer. Aizawa for once had remained awake and vigilant. After all they had to make sure no one cheated. "Due to the nature of the practical portion of the exam we have decided to give everyone an hour to prep for them. I'd suggest getting something to eat and some light stretching," Aizawa exited the room after that. Then he popped back in, "Just leave your packets on the front desk and someone will be by to get them."

"How do you think you did, Katsuki?" Izuku asked standing up. The class was a whirlwind of activity and talking.

"That was SO hard!" Ashido stated and stretched.

"Of course it was. We weren't meant to complete it," Todoroki commented before leaving.

"What?! I tried so hard to finish it all. That's so underhanded of them!" Ashido complained.

"It is a bit, but at least then they can adjust the curriculum to reflect where we're all at. Then for those that need help this will tell them," Momo defended bringing her packet to the front.

"I made it over half way so I'd say I did pretty well," Katsuki gloated smacking down his packet.

"So did I. I guess we'll just have to see our scores in the end," Izuku shrugged.

"That wouldn't be necessary, because I'll mop the floor with you in the practical," Katsuki taunted. Izuku grinned.

"Anyone know what those are going to be like?" Ashido asked.

"Hopefully, it'll be against those robot again," Mineta chimed in strolling to the front.

"That sounds kind of boring," Izuku blurted out.

"Don't jinx it, man," Kaminari stated before continued, "I'd be a pain for me to adjust against a real life opponent." Ashido nodded in agreement.

"I'm sure whatever they have in store will be fair and thought out," Momo assured the class.

Izuku and Momo decided to go to lunch first. Their quirks to a degree relied on being 100% full previous to the encounter. Tokoyami, Satou, Aoyama, Jirou, and Kaminari joined them.

Momo and Izuku sat down opposite to each in a mildly busy section. Class 1-B was out for lunch as well. They probably had to go through the same hellish test. General students were with them right now. There wasn't anyone really familiar around. The hero students were generally with the business students for lunch. The general students had their own lunch hour and so did the support students. It made sense due to the sheer number of general course students. A few third year hero students were out an about as well.

"What do you think it will be?" Izuku asked consuming an apple.

"If I had to guess I would go with hands-on work. Something like our quirk evaluation but more intense," Momo shrugged.

"Hmm, that would be fun, but I think that wouldn't work for me," Izuku replied.

"So you're telling me you don't have to talk about your quirk with the staff at all? Do they even know what you have now?" Momo wondered thinking it was just an oversight.

"I think its too complicated to be treated that way," Izuku stated.

"I don't think that at all. A list would suffice. Then you break down the mechanics of quirk synergy and quirk slots. Its not that complicated," Momo smirked.

"Says the person that's wielded it before," Izuku retorted.

"Further proof that its not as complicated as you think. I was able to wield it just fine. Well, except for the backlash, but you don't have that," Momo smiled and held out her hand like Katsuki and Izuku did for explosion. She imitated the kickback, "It was fun though. We might have to give it a try again."

"We just might have too," Izuku grinned. If not for someone sort of eavesdropping and breaking into the conversation Momo would have blushed a little bit from that.

"Were you guys talking about the semester exams by chance?" someone from another table leaned back.

"Yeah, are they hard?" Izuku asked moving a bit from the intruder.

"No, man, those are a cake walk. All we had to fight was those mechs," The senior waved it off like it was the most natural thing ever.

"Really? That's great! We should tell the class so they can stop worrying," Momo suggested.

Izuku thought about it for a moment, but nodded, "Sure, let's finish up and head back." "Thanks by the way," Izuku said looking at the upperclassman.

"No problem. Its good to see a full class of heroes. The second years didn't get so lucky," the senior stated before going back to their table.

That gave both of them some food for thought. Aizawa wasn't the most lenient teacher. It was possible that he kicked out a whole class. A thought for another time.

The walk back to class was a bit awkward since Momo was pretty sure Midoriya just hit on her. It wasn't completely intentional. More like his words and mind just moved that way before he could rein it in.

There was still about 20 minutes left on the break. Momo entered first seeing the class and the small cliques they had formed. Just about everyone turned to look at her, "Good news, everybody, I heard from an upperclassman that we'll be fighting robots!" Several classmates sighed and relaxed.

"Thank god, I don't have to calibrate my acid for real people yet," Ashido cheered.

Izuku followed suit and passed right by Momo. Yaoyorozu joined Ashido's girl group and chatted with them. The green-haired teen stood in front of the window and just watched the skyline. Someone came up to him. Ojiro, if the body outline gave him any clue.

"How are you holding up?" Ojiro asked standing next to Izuku. He was sort of mimicking the stoic look at Izuku had.

"I've been better. How about you? Not to torn up by losing in the semi-finals I hope?" Izuku smirked.

Ojiro chuckled briefly, "That was a great opportunity for me. I got to see for myself how I would stack."

"Yeah, and what did you find?" Izuku looked over at him.

"I've got a lot of hard work to put it. I've also got to extend my fight style and grow," Ojiro replied as his tail wrapped around his leg.

"Ever consider exploring the possibility that your tail isn't as normal as it seems? Its strong and pretty quick, but its limited by physicality. If you could manipulate the length and increase strength I think your tail could really turn into a game changer," Izuku suggested feeling the bone and muscle structure of his tail.

Ojiro put a hand up to his chin, "Never thought of it like that. Its just part of me you know?"

Izuku let out one 'heh' before speaking, "I wish that was the case for mine. At least you understand the entirety of your quirk. I'm still figuring mine out."

"That's what we're here for right?" Ojiro nudged Izuku, "Just have some patience. I'm sure mastering our quirks is somewhere in the syllabus."

"Thanks, I just hope my quirk can be patient with me," Izuku stated. Ojiro rose an eyebrow at that.

Aizawa entered the room a minute or two before extended lunch was over. The class quickly found their seats.

"Good. We're taking this seriously for once," Aizawa smirked taking the podium. Then Principal Nezu jumped out of Aizawa's scarf capture equipment thing.

"Good afternoon, students! I'm Principal Nezu for any of you seeing me for the first time. I came in person to tell you the news!" Nezu waited for dramatic effect, "Instead of the typical robots we use during the semester exams, we're going to go for a more hands on approach." Their was something sinister in his voice. Izuku gulped loud enough a few heads got turned. Having a special quirk like Izuku's he had to meet with Nezu to sort of explain it. Nezu at that time told him that if he forcefully took anyone's quirk he would be expelled on the spot without question. The villain potential was too great to risk. Nezu understood that he could very well be making a villain doing that, but many of the students at UA had strong quirks. The few times he had acquired new quirks suspiciously earned him a chat with the principal.

Nezu continued, "We have decided to pair up the students against the teachers of UA!"

The horror on everyone's face must have been like a drug for Nezu. He had this gleam in his eye that told Izuku he was enjoying this.

"We felt like the recent surge of villain activity merited a change in the way we conducted exams," Nezu was preparing to make an speech or another sinister statement, "I can see a few of you are worried about taking on a teacher of UA. Fear not! Teachers will be equipped with high density weights. That should bring them down to mere humans. There would also be two win conditions: You can either capture them using the provided handcuffs. Or escape across the arena in the provided exit. Depending on the team either choice is a viable strategy. Each team will be given 5 minutes to prep and then a fight by fight timer.

"The pairs are as follows: Denki Kaminari and Mina Ashido versus Me. Yuga Aoyama and Katsuki Bakugo versus No. 13. Kyoka Jirou and Koji Koda versus Present Mic. Fumikage Tokoyami and Tsuyu Asui versus Ectoplasm. Hanta Sero and Minoru Mineta versus Midnight. Mezo Shoji and Tooru Hagakune versus Snipe. Rikido Satou and Eijiro Kirishima versus Cementoss. Tenya Iida and Mashirao Ojiro versus Power-loader," Finished taking a breath of air.

"I'll be taking Todoroki and Yaoyorozu," Aizawa stated grinning in their direction.

All Might burst into the room. "Fear not for the buses are here! I will be taking Midoriya and Uraraka," All Might declared. He was already wearing his weights. They were thick gray bands around the wrists and ankles. Izuku glared at them recognizing them. Mei had made a prototype of those about a month ago.

Nezu leapt onto All Might's shoulders. It was kind of cute. Aizawa followed them. "Pair up and let's get out there," Momo requested as people were getting up.

"Don't forget your hero uniform this is after all an official test," Nezu commented before the teachers were all gone from sight.

\- Bakugo and Aoyama VS No. 13 -

Katsuki sighed as they approached the USJ center. Aoyama wasn't the worst partner, but it could have been better. "Hey Frenchy, how does your shit work?" Katsuki tried his best to be nice.

"Well, monsieur, my belt focuses a laser that shots from my navel. Its dazzling light is equal to its sparkling power," Aoyama declared. That was somehow less useful then just seeing it. Katsuki _knew_ it had a punch to it. He also knew it upset his stomach quickly. A drawback he'll have to work with.

No. 13 was another story. From what Katsuki understood they had the power to suck in an object and destroy it like a black hole. That would make both his explosion and Aoyama's laser less impactful. In fact he'd wager the Black Hole quirk was a hard counter to both of there's.

"This isn't going to be dazzling but I need you to take a cheap shot at him. I think capturing 13 is our only hope," Katsuki reasoned.

"While I like to be the main attraction I suppose I can make do with being the dazzling star player," Aoyama replied.

Katsuki blinked a few times to process that. He snapped out of it, "First we need to attack together and fool him into thinking we don't have a strategy. Then you're going to break away and try to get in a few cheap shots. Don't make 'em too strong just enough to split his attention. Then I'll go the other way while also using medium strength. If I'm lucky by this point these bad boys will be ready." Katsuki padded his gauntlets, "Then while he's focused on stopping my quirk from destroying him you swoop in and capture!" Katsuki tossed the capture cuffs to Aoyama.

"Sounds, good, monsieur! I like the thought of coming in and stealing the show!" Aoyama gestured like an actor in a play.

"Just don't give yourself a stomach ache early otherwise we both fail," Katsuki warned getting up to the starting line.

No. 13 announced over the speaker, "You have 20 minutes to secure a win condition against me!"

That was their signal. 20 wasn't long. But it also meant that the teachers thought they would make quick work of 13 given too much time. A few other reasons came to mind but Katsuki liked that one most.

Katsuki was cleanly ahead of Aoyama. Which was fine. Aoyama was among the few classmates with long range capabilities. 13 was in sight. 13 was basically the same as they had seen before in the USJ center. Maybe his helmet was slightly shinier, but otherwise nothing stood out from memory.

"Frontal Assault? I don't that's smart," 13 mouthed off. The astronaut hero put up his finger and the vortex started. It had a wicked amount of pull. Katsuki stood his ground and fired off weak explosions to negate the pull. A laser shot past Katsuki head. It was well aimed. Aoyama wasn't quite as useless as he seemed.

The laser was dazzling. It was pulled at a hard angle into the vortex. Katsuki glanced over at Aoyama and nodded as he past him. The other blonde ran to their right. 13 was already moving his other hand poised to attack. Then Katsuki let out a large explosion. If Kurogiri was right 13 didn't have much battle experience so an unexpected attack might make him flinch.

Katsuki was right on the money. 13 for a second focused on capturing his explosion. That gave Aoyama the space and time he needed to make a gap and set up. 13 looked away and opened the first finger on his other hand. A few lasers got popped off. One went wide but still arced a bit towards 13. Katsuki realized that Aoyama was trying to gauge the pull. They had learned in physics that black holes have enough gravity to bend light, but light coming in at enough of an off angle will just slingshot around the black hole. If 13's quirk was treated just like that it should be possible to fire a shot and still hit it.

The explosive teen grinned seeing his partner was more than just a pretty face. It was Katsuki's turn to start running. The teen popped off medium sized blasts as he ran. 13 was more or less stationary which would be a disadvantage against them.

A laser actually did arc around and hit the hero. It didn't have enough power to puncture, but it knocked the black hole suction off trajectory. 13 intensified the gravity that was aiming at Aoyama. That was Katsuki's signal.

"How about some bigger firepower!" Katsuki shouted firing off two large explosions. Then he kept firing them off by slight the angle. Wind from the force wiped around and into 13. It wasn't much, but if 13 didn't do anything then a maximum explosion would.

Aoyama buckled over and 13 instantly swung the his other hand other. Dual black holes versus double 70% blasts. Katsuki hope had sunk a bit seeing his partner fall, but it was just a fake out.

The dazzling teen was running headlong at 13. A beep only just audible to Katsuki sounded. His face turned to a grin. "I hope you're ready for this!" Katsuki shouted taking one moment to prep the shot. It was arced up a bit. This should make him adjust. The explosive teen pulled the pin and a crescendo of fire shot from his gauntlet.

13 was forced to react and adjust both his hands. By the time 13 noticed Aoyama running towards him it was too late. Just as one arm swept towards Aoyama, a laser got fired and hit the arm. That momentary halting of motion was more than enough to seal the match. The capture cuff snapped on 13's wrist.

"Well done. Report to the observation room if you want to see the other matches," 13 stated bowing to them. Aoyama bowed back.

13 walked off. Katsuki and Aoyama met up in the center. "Nice job, you're not as much of a fruit cake as I thought," Katsuki raised up his hand.

Aoyama gave him a high five, "And I thought you were just a hot headed, but I can see that you dazzle just as brightly as me."

"Uhhuh," Katsuki replied still not sure about the terminology.

"Shall we go see how the others are doing, monsieur?" Aoyama suggested.

"Yeah, I'd like to see if Izuku got beat yet," Katsuki smirked as they walked off.

The two teens got to the observation room. There was only one battle still going. It was around the 30 minute mark. If Katsuki's test was anything to go by Izuku was about to run out of time. That thought made him grin. Being the best wasn't good enough. He had to make sure that he kept ahead of Izuku all along the way. As being stronger than Izuku was one hell of a statement.

"How long does he have left?" Katsuki asked the group that was just standing and watching.

Sero was the only person absent now that Katsuki actually looked and took a head count.

"An 1 hour 30 minutes, give or take a minute or two," Yaoyorozu answered glancing over at him.

Based on facial expressions and standing mannerisms, Katsuki could guess how failed and passed. It was surprisingly the majority of the class. Wait... 2 hours?!

"He got 2 hours?!" Katsuki shouted by accident.

"Yup, but I'll say: not all of us had to face _that_," Todoroki pointed at the screen. A torrent of wind _shattered_ buildings like they were made of paper. Seeing that made Katsuki pale a bit. This was the mountainous gap between him and the best. The annoying fact was that Uraraka and Midoriya were doing an excellent job of evading him. Katsuki would just have to wait with bated breath just like the rest of his classmates.

* * *

Drakonite227:

A bit of a preview for the All Might test. Trust me that isn't much of a spoiler. The next chapter should be longer fitting in a modified version of Aizawa's test and the much awaited All Might test. Tell me what you thought of the 13's Test.

Just to share with everyone whats coming up next: Finishing this arc. The mall encounter with Shigaraki with a twist. The Summer Camp training Arc (probably will end up being 4-5 chapters. There's a ton of ground to cover there). Rescue Operation Arc (which will be a bit different. This will be around the point Uraraka will completely take Izuku's place in most of the canon events. Which gives me an opportunity to explore a few more things past this point).

I'm considering building another underworld group of horrifically strong quirk users. It would be like the current Liberation stuff, but slightly larger in scope. A sort of end game content if you will. I have quite a few already planned quirks, but if anyone has any they would like to suggest I'm all ears. Making villains is way more fun than coming up with the multitude of filler heroes I'm going to need in the future. Sorry for the long notes thanks for sticking it out!


	25. Semester Exam - Part 2

\- Todoroki and Yaoyorozu VS Eraserhead -

Momo was doing her best to scan the area that was their battleground. They weren't inside it yet, but it was modeled after a dense suburb area. It was probably the prime area that Aizawa-sensei was most effective. He was a lone wolf after all that operated mostly at night. Ambushes and surprise attacks were his specialty. The dense suburb had dozens of hiding spots every block.

She glanced over at Todoroki. He had that same stoic look on his face. He was hard to read. Thanks to his reserved nature even basic outbursts or quick decisions were jarring. It didn't look like he was thinking. Aizawa was the hard counter to both of them.

"Stick close to me. I think finding him is going to be our first priority," Todoroki stated taking a deep breath. _Is he worried?_ Momo thought.

"What are we going to do once we find him?" Momo asked crossing her arms.

"There's two of us. I think we should be able to outmaneuver him and capture him," Todoroki replied.

Momo was taken back by that. It wasn't so much of a plan more like a guideline. "That can't be the full extent of the plan," Momo retorted.

"Until we engage him for the first time, its the best we got," Todoroki rebutted.

"I can think of at least two more that would be just as effective if not more effective," Momo retorted even more serious.

"Can you go through it in less than 3 minutes?" Todoroki replied now looking straight at her.

"Tch, fine. Do you want any weapons at least?" Momo offered.

"No thanks. I'll be trying to use my ice and I'll let you know when my powers work," Todoroki stated.

Momo nodded. A horn sounded starting the exam. The raven-haired teen created a steel quarterstaff. She ran beside Todoroki as he lead.

The makeshift suburb was massive. It was nearly a half kilometer (.31 mi) across. There were about a million blind corners, fences, and other hiding spots. It was a bit of an exaggeration, but it felt like that with all the adrenaline pumping through her veins.

Then it happened. "We've been spotted!" Todoroki shouted dodging a strip of carbon capture tape. The other end of the capture tape got wiped at her. Momo struck it with her staff. Her intention was to make stun grenade, but nothing. Her quirk had been shut off. It was a foreign chilling feeling. It kind of felt like a part of her was being suffocated.

Despite being handicapped Aizawa was much faster than them. He had managed to completely change location. A capture tape flew out at her. The tape had come from a dark alleyway behind Momo. It wrapped around her staff before she could swat it. Then he pulled. If she resisted it would only last so long. Instead she let go, but palmed the end of the staff as hard as she could. The staff hit nothing, but Aizawa spoke, "That was almost good."

Ice begun to coat the ground aimed into the alleyway. Then it stopped. Momo took that moment to make a stun grenade from her back. The grenade dropped down pin already pulled. She covered her ears and shouted, "RUN!"

Todoroki did the same and ran with her. The grenade exploded in a blinding white light and was still more than loud enough to leave the ears ringing. The two of them duck into a lawn. They found a rather secluded porch. Staying put might actually buy them more time than running around.

"Alright, Yaoyorozu-san, let's hear it," Todoroki requested sliding down a wall. He was catching his breath.

"Based on his speed and familiarity with the area I think I have one option that should work," Momo answered taking a few deep breathes. Sprinting like that really took the air from them.

"We've got about 6 minutes before he goes into seek more," Todoroki figured.

"I wouldn't need that long. First of all we're going to need a blanket. Then a catapult and a very special kind of metal fiber," Momo grinned at the near ridiculousness of her ploy.

"A catapult?" Todoroki rose an eyebrow. She shrugged.

"Its more fun than a gun and he won't see it coming," Momo explained. She blushed a bit realizing what making the blanket would entail. She would have to get over this eventually, but that could wait until she was a third year. "Could you turn around? I don't want to wreck my costume again," Momo asked. Todoroki cocked his head until it dawned on him. He blushed too but complied.

The raven-hair girl took off her top. She then focused on making a blanket large enough to cover Todoroki and her. The blanket came out folded. Replacing her top she cleared her throat, "All done. Could you help me with his next one. The metal fiber needs to same coiled otherwise this won't work."

"S-sure," Todoroki nodded.

The metal fiber came out around the bottom of her sternum. Todoroki looked away as he was within 60cm (2ft) of her. After a minute of awkwardly standing, Todoroki got his chance to step back from her when the metal fiber finally stopped. "What is this?" Todoroki asked.

"Its a metal fiber that had a peculiar property. If heated up it will snapped back to its original form. You will provide the heat and as long as it remains coiled until we launch it. It will snap back to that shape. The metal's strength should be more than enough to capture Aizawa-sensei," Momo explained.

The catapult was next. Albeit that one was simpler. Making a full fledged catapult would be ridiculous, but a miniature one would do. Unlike the cannons she pushed out of her body from time to time, it would be dramatically easier to just construct one piece by piece. So she did.

A small rope allowed her to pulled the medieval contraption along. "Okay, now we just need to engage him again. We'll leave this here and break through that alley as a 'distraction'," Momo explained taking a deep breath.

"It'll work don't worry. This time we'll confront him and I'll make a giant ice wall through that alley. Then we can break through here and enact the plan. As long as I stay under the blanket he shouldn't be able to stop the fire," Todoroki assured her.

"You're right. Let's win this!" Momo nodded running out of the alleyway with a quarterstaff in hand. Todoroki had iced over his hand.

There teacher was two lanes over on top of power lines. First order of business was to getting him over there direction. Unfortunately, he spotted them first. Todoroki's ice fizzled out and he went 'Tch'.

Momo produced a bow with an already notched arrow. If not for the training with Izuku and pushing her limits that sort of thing could have been halted midway. She took aim and fired.

Their teacher vault from the power lines onto a rooftop. He was sprinting towards them. For a moment Todoroki's ice came back online. But alas it wasn't long enough to produce anything large. He did ice the ground around him. In that moment, Momo notched another arrow.

This arrow forced Aizawa into the same block as them. He stood on some power lines as he regained his balance. Neither arrow had come even close, but that wasn't the point. After a few more seconds, Aizawa dove down and got to street level with them. This was optimal.

In the next wave she had to make objects, she opted for her first ever creation: a Russian nesting doll. This nesting doll had a nasty surprise contained in it. She lobbed it at Aizawa.

The teacher jumped back and swung his capture tape at it. The tape broke through the fragile outside of the nesting doll. The stun grenade within detonated. "Todoroki, now!" Momo shouted as she ran back to the building.

The white and red-haired teen despite being unable to see extended out his hand. From his quirk he summoned a giant ice wall. Aizawa had to retreat seeing the glacier approaching him.

The two teens took a moment to recover before Momo tossed a huge blanket over both of them. She made the upper body of a mannequin. She took a deep breath and Todoroki nodded to her under the blanket. They both took off into the alleyway.

Aizawa was quickly on their heels. Except he took the bait. The pro teacher set out his capture tape and vaulted past them. As soon as it hit he jumped straight down at them. That was when the greater plan was revealed. Momo had been crouching down holding up the half mannequin. The catapult had just been hidden by the blanket. The teacher saw the trap he had been lead into. He jumped back at the moment Momo hit the release on the catapult. The coiled metal fiber was launched into the air.

"Todoroki, now!" Momo commanded. A torrent of flame emerged from the blanket. Aizawa was confused as it wasn't aimed at him. She grinned seeing his reaction, "Have you ever heard of nitinol, sensei? Its a special kind of alloy that when heated will snap back to its shaped form."

That bit of information didn't help out Aizawa at all. He knew right then he had lost. The nitinol cloth hardened before coiling around Aizawa. It was wrapped around him pretty densely so escaping was out of the question. Momo came up to him and cuffed him.

"Color me impressed. I thought you two would butt heads until desperation would kick in," Aizawa smirked looking up at Momo.

"If not for that short break we very well could have," Momo lamented.

"Now help me out of this," Aizawa deadpanned.

Todoroki smirked and Momo chuckled at him.

They had been instructed to go to the observation room to watch any of the remaining matches. Aizawa had to submit his review first and then he would be joining them. Their arena had been the closest to the observation room. "I'm sorry about the beginning of the match. I should have taken the time to listen to you," Todoroki apologized.

Momo smiled that was the first time she's seen him nice, "I was stubborn too. We should have listened to each other, but I think our ego's got in the way."

Todoroki smirked, "Its kind of ironic."

"What is?" Momo was curious now. They had got the observation room.

"I voted for you to be the class rep. So I should have been more trusting of you," Todoroki explained opening the door for her.

She blushed. It meant a lot for him to admit that. "Thank you. I was beginning to doubt myself compared to you or Izuku or even Bakugo," she chuckled.

"Well not all of us can be Midoriya. But you shouldn't worry about that. You've got an amazing quirk after all and a good head on your shoulders," Todoroki smiled at her. That really made her red in the cheeks.

She cleared her throat trying to ignore the warmth in her cheeks, "Shall we see who's still left?"

"Sure, I'd like to know how we compare," Todoroki went back to his emotionless norm.

They walked up to gathering of classmates. Bakugo and Aoyama were still missing. The camera on Izuku's fight read 20 minutes. Tokoyami, Asui, Hagakure, Shoji, Iida, and Ojiro were present. Three teams had beaten them. Ashido and Kaminari's match was still going. Satou and Kirishima had just finished if the concrete lock down by Cementoss was any indication.

Bakugo and Aoyama was holding their own just fine against 13. Present Mic just got covered with... Momo almost puked. Bugs had assaulted Present Mic and the teacher looked to have passed out. Mineta was also just about to finished after immobilizing Midnight. Sero was out cold, but Mineta carried him through the finish line. If she was being honest, that was unexpected of Mineta. He was a womanizer and she disliked him for it. But when push comes to shove he can really be a hero.

Then the main attraction: All Might vs Midoriya and Uraraka. It was an extreme battle to watch. All Might was just a juggernaut. Most of the faux city they were in had been demolished. Based on the lack of burning and fire it was probably all inflicted by All Might. A sobering thought. Momo gulped seeing the desperation on Uraraka's and Midoriya's face.

"How long do they have left?" Momo asked pointing to All Might.

"2 hours was their time limit," Recovery girl spoke up, "They're going to need it. All Might's not pulling any punches on those two. I almost feel bad for them."

"2 hours?! I would say that sounds unfair, but All Might," Momo stated.

"They're doing better than many of us could do," Asui pointed out.

Most of the class agreed and they just watched.

\- Midoriya and Uraraka VS All Might -

Each group had their own massive arena to duke it out. Over the loud speaker All Might's voice could be heard, "Don't feel too pressured to get out of here. You have a 2 hour time limit to beat me." Izuku gulped standing next to Uraraka.

"We have 5 minutes to come up with something," Uraraka stated bending and stretching.

"Do you think escaping is the best route?" Izuku asked standing outside of a makeshift city.

"I think neither are good options against All Might. He might have a time limit now but its still longer than 2 hours... I think we should fight," Uraraka suggested staring down at the makeshift city as well.

"Alright, we'll both got a good idea of each other's limits and powers. I think I should take point and tank him," Izuku suggested.

"I really hate the idea of you tanking his attacks but you're best suited for it," Uraraka glanced his way.

"Don't be. I'll gladly do it so we can pass," Izuku stated. They were both taking deep breaths. Then they put on their best face. The bell sounded.

Both heroes in training ran into the arena. All Might was at the other end and did not hide at all. Granted he really didn't need to. They heard his booming voice, "I hope you weren't expecting me to go easy on my two best students! In fact I'll make sure to put both of you through the ringer." He wound back his fist, "Texas Smash!"

Izuku's eye's went wide. Uraraka tackled Izuku out of the way. Instead of just knocking him out of the way, he grappled with her and their Force Nullification quirks activated. They flew out of the way and collided with a wall. The sound of the air tearing through concrete was deafening and it terrified them. Izuku and Uraraka were holding each other.

Her body was pressed tight on his. She looked up into his eyes. It was a tense moment for sure. She broke away and he cleared his throat. That was an interesting moment. He felt a real connection there. "Alright, let's go," Izuku primed his fire. She nodded and fired off her empowerment.

Izuku kicked off into the air and blasted off. Uraraka nullified much of her weight. She bolted after him. All Might was still holding his ground. He didn't appear to be fazed by them attacking. The pro hero pulled back his fist again. He looked up at Izuku.

The green haired teen had a wide eyed expression as another wind blast was made by All Might. The flying teen made a quick sideways dodge. Uraraka called out to him, "Watch out!" Izuku looked back and saw All Might was gone. The crunch of concrete and steel alerted him to the presence of the pro. All Might leapt from the side of a building at him. Izuku could not dodge the pro. All Might clotheslined the aerial teen and drove him to the ground with him. Izuku was planted into the concrete.

His bones and muscles groaned from the pain. All Might apparently understood how high speed regeneration worked and how to harm individuals with it most. Concussive damage or full body damage was the best way to hurt people with high speed regeneration.

Hellflame was switched on. Green fire streamed from Izuku at All Might. The pro hero dodged the blast of fire and sped at Uraraka. The brunette charged her body. All Might and Uraraka clashed in the middle of the field. The force explosion from the clash blew out windows and rattled the ground.

Izuku pulled himself out of the ground. Then he saw her. His teammate had negated All Might's attack, but her arm had paid the price for that. Explosion was swapped back. He rocketed at them.

Another exchange from Uraraka and All Might. It was clear to Izuku that neither of them had the power to oppose All Might. All Might skidded back a few feet. Izuku past right by him. Uraraka had two broken arms. Izuku came to sliding stop next to her.

All Might charged just as Izuku predicted. "Cover your ears!" Izuku requested holding out his palm. Green sparks crawled down his arm from his shoulder. All Might stopped in his tracks. The pro read the attack correctly, but he didn't know the range. Really only Uraraka could know at this point. The green explosion that came from his hand was huge.

All Might wound up another wind blast. It clashed with the explosion before overtaking it. Izuku grinned and let out the real amplified blast. It was nearly three times the size of the previous blast. He felt a bone in his arm snap and winced.

There was no way All Might could have expected this attack. The wind blast he let out earlier was engulfed by the new explosion. Izuku however wasn't sticking around to see. He grabbed Uraraka and picked her up. Then he was off. "Sorry for the rough handling but we need to regroup," Izuku stated with her over his shoulder. She nodded and grit her teeth from the pain.

The buildings he past were more or less all the same. Maybe a few different colors, but all just for show. He zigzagged through the buildings hoping if All Might was following them that he wouldn't be able to keep up. The green haired teen found a dark alley to stop in. He let her down and immediately tended to her injuries. "You're crazy you know," Izuku chastised her.

She smiled at him, "I've got a teammate that can help with that. I was just hoping you would suck up your pride and help out for a change."

Izuku chuckled a bit, "Maybe I do need someone to knock some sense into me every once in awhile."

She laughed and lightly hit him in the chest, "Isn't that what friends are for?"

"If you guys don't come out soon I'll have to start demolishing the place!" All Might yelled.

"God is he scary as a villain," Izuku commented as he coursed healing into her. The broken arms mended and the discolored skin vanished.

"That's really tiring. I think I can only withstand that one more time," Uraraka sighed flexing her arms again.

"Let's not let that happen. I don't think we can fight. We need to run. I've got an idea but I'm not sure it'll work. He's just so overwhelming powerful," Izuku sighed. He checked his reserves. 30% fat reserves and 60% power left. Even he could only take a few more All Might level hits or self inflicted wounds.

"Tell me. I think we can do it if we work together," Uraraka stood up. Izuku's healing was less punishing compared to Recovery Girls. This was mostly due to him understanding the individuals he was healing better than her. In Uraraka's case One For All footed the bill of the healing, but it was still exhausting to use up that much power.

"Okay, phase 1, We need to tag team fight him. I'll engage and you'll back me up. I'll try to nullify his attacks and then we'll switch. You'll then nullify his next attack and I'll attack. If we keep switching off like that we should gain ground. Don't use 100%. Use around 40% and I'll heal the damage when I attack," Izuku took a breath before continuing, "Phase 2, once the exit is within dashing range, I need you to get your Force Nullification on All Might. Then I need you to deny him moving. If all goes well we'll have a minute to run for it."

"Sounds good. What if things go side ways?" Uraraka asked.

"If that happens..." He looked down and his pride hurt, "I'll take the fall. If at least one of us passes I'll feel good about the exam."

"But-" Uraraka started before he cut her off, "No. Let me do this for you. Its my penitence." She frowned, then sighed, but gave in and nodded. Izuku mouthed a 'Thank you'.

Ochako hated to just abandon her classmate, but Izuku had made up his mind. Then she felt the air pressure change. Whenever All Might had used one of his massive wind blasts the local pressure fell. Most people would not have been aware of this, but for someone that is very aware of pressure on their stomach it was noticeable. "We need to move now!" Ochako commanded. Izuku had a plan of action. She leapt at her and hugged her. Then vertigo ensued as they hurled off the ground and into the air again.

If not for the sudden lack of stability, she would have thought his hold a bit intimate. Then the sound came. A horrible metal bending, concrete vaporizing kind of sound filled her ears. She looked back and her expression was shock. Where they had just been was reduced to rubble and dust. All Might meant business.

They landed and he let her go. "Close call," Izuku sighed trying to catch his breath. Her vertigo quickly went away as she scanned her surroundings. If not for Izuku navigating, this concrete jungle would have been a nightmare. This whole time she had been maintaining her Zero Coat. It was exhausting in same way that wearing a weighted vest would be.

"Let's go," Izuku directed as he took off running. Ochako caught up to him quick enough.

"I'll stay 4 steps behind you when we get out into the open," Ochako stated right next to him.

"Good. I'll be alternating fire and explosive when I act. If I'm open palm prepare your ears," Izuku warned. She nodded as they broke out into the ruined stretch that All Might originally made.

All Might had moved back to the city's end. He was standing in a place that was strategically chosen. They would have to approach him. He was at the advantage. Izuku ran headlong at him. Ochako gulped and followed. Running into the jaws of the beast wasn't the best strategy, but she trusted him.

"A frontal assault? Do you think that's wise?" All Might asked winding up his fist.

"Catch it," Izuku whispered as he brought a rock up to her. The rock was the size of a baseball. She understood immediately. Ochako took the rock and made it weightless. All she had to do was control her strength on the throw. It could crumble if her grip was too tight.

He planted his feet and she stood just off to the right 4 steps behind him. All Might released his wind blast. Izuku held up one palm and the explosion was deafening. Thankfully, Ochako didn't need her ears to make this throw.

Just after the two forces collided she saw her window. Dust and smoke was everywhere. But if All Might hadn't moved she knew where to aim. She readied the throw much like a baseball pitcher. Then she wound up the pitch and let it loose. The rock vanished from view in an instant. She'll have to find out later just how hard she can throw objects.

The sound of a man groaning meant she hit home. Now was there time to act while he was recovering. She took point and charged ahead. Izuku was a few steps back. It was about 8 seconds before another attack was made at them. A fist came through the smoke.

Ochako planted her feet and brought up both arms at 40% power. All Might's fist connected and it hurt. Much of the smoke got blown away by the force they produced. Izuku passed her on the left and gave her one touch. The ache in her muscles and bones washed away.

A torrent of red flame shot out at All Might. The flame covered over half the makeshift road. All Might merely protected his face as the flame engulfed him. Izuku kept going, "Uraraka! Get ahead of me."

She nodded. All Might's next attack had to be from behind. If they were sticking with the strategy Izuku would be next to tank a hit.

All Might jumped into the air so fast the flames couldn't get enough oxygen to last on him. The large man landed on the roof of a building. The two teens were nearly outside of the city area and onto the final stretch. All Might was grinning now. He shot off from the top of the roof. The entire top of the building exploded from his leap.

Ochako felt Izuku grab her hand and pull her back. She complied and jumped back. He passed her. All Might landed right in front of them. The ground cratered where he landed. Izuku was knocked off balance and stumbled towards All Might. The pro must have been expecting this. He grabbed Izuku by his right arm. Her partner went airborne and then slammed into the ground. His yelp of pain enraged her.

40% to her right leg. She shot off from the top of the crater. It was much faster than All Might thought she could go. His block was completely off timing. 40% to her right arm. Her right fist came out and connected with his face. The giant of a man staggered back.

Ochako turned around and reached down. She planted five fingers on Izuku's leg. She'll have to apologize later to him, but sometimes the best solutions look kind of cruel at first. Her hand gripped his ankle and she pivoted before tossing him towards the entrance.

All Might had recovered by then. He threw another punch at her. She was ready this time. 40% to her left leg. With a burst of movement she just cleared the huge fist. Her hand came up and slammed his hip. She then went into a roll to compliment her momentum. It was an over shoulder, one rotation kind of roll. Ochako got up and begun to run again.

Izuku had canceled her Force Nullification on himself. He was back to his feet by the time she got to him. He matched her pace and put a hand on her shoulder. She was still using 40%, so that full restore had just bought her time before her legs would be useless again.

All Might was not a passive audience to their escape. He wound up his fist. At the moment before the punch would be complete she reactivated her Force Nullification. It was like a ton of bricks hitting her stomach.

Her Zero Coat was shut off and she tripped from the pain. Izuku caught her. "Are you alright?!" he asked concerned.

"Yeah, its like trying to stop a freight train," Ochako commented feeling her stomach turn and churn. By her calculations she would be able to stop one more before the limit on her quirk was reached. Anymore and the pain would make her pass out. Even with a 25 times (50% OFA) boost to her Force Nullification, it wouldn't last.

Izuku grimaced. "Focus on him! I've got you," he said picking her up bridal style. Ochako couldn't help but blush from his choice. Then another movement by All Might. Her blush was gone in an instant. He was testing her nullification. The speed at which he deduced her quirk was frightening. He must have realized that she was only stopping his attacks and not normal movements.

Watching All Might adapt to her quirk was amazing. He made a short and quick upwards movement with his hand. The third law of motion moved him back to the ground. He couldn't walk, but a weak punch made him fly into a wall. All Might gripped the wall and planted his feet firmly. His muscles flexed then she felt his power surge.

Again at the moment of culmination she fired off her quirk. Her stomach was done. She leaned away from him and vomited. She released her quirk as she caught her breath. "You need to tell me why you vomit rainbows later," Izuku asked smiling at her.

She felt really weak now. All Might was running after them. Izuku glanced over his shoulder. They were about 15 strides from the exit. He grit his teeth. All Might was bound to catch up before they could exit.

Ochako felt herself go weightless. She was hastily tossed towards the exit. She looked back to see Izuku ready himself. This was not how they were going to win. You don't sacrifice your friends. Ochako canceled his nullification before she could exit. She tumbled across the ground until she stopped.

Her instinct took over. Her Zero Coat was pushed to 60% without her consent and her feet started to move before she could think. What happened next was only something she could relive via the recordings. Her mind was focused. Her thoughts clear. In a split second she was next to Izuku. He had both of his hand out and made into a funnel. This was his ultimate attack.

Ochako stood side by side with him. Some of her pink lightning was arcing over onto his body. Some of his green lightning was arcing over to hers. They felt connected. Izuku protested at first but after seeing her face and feeling her lightning he knew. Her attack would go first so that the extra air would feed his explosion and make it even larger.

They were in sync. Ochako wound up her fist. The air pressure dropped. Then she let it loose. Just like All Might, she had done her first ever Wind Blast. She'll have to make a name later for this technique. Then Izuku's Nuclear Blast was let off a split second later. The blast engulfed the wind blast and it ballooned to nearly ten times the size.

All Might was for once today shocked. He let loose his own wind blast hoping to dampen their team attack.

Satisfied All Might had been dealt with Ochako turned to her partner. Or where he should have been. Her vision traced the drag marks from his feet. Then she saw him and her expression was a mixture of worry and shock. The significantly increased blast also came with an equal amount of recoil. An imprint of his body was on the wall behind them and Izuku was laying on the ground.

She bolted over and checked his pulse. It was weak, but still beating. His arms had been broken and the bones were going out of his skin. It was a gruesome sight. If she had to guess the titanic blast also broke his ribs and legs. Ochako rolled him over onto his back. It was her turn to carry him.

Just like the bridal style he had her in that was the safest way she could carry him. Doing her best to ease the g forces on him, she maintained a quick but constant speed out of the arena.

The horns sounded. "Congratulations! Please report to the observatory for your report. But make sure to see Recovery Girl first!" Principal Nezu's voice came over the loud speaker. Ochako nodded.

\- Infirmary -

Pain. Pain was the first thing he felt getting up. Then a bright blinding light. It was just the ceiling light, but it was not a welcomed sight. Izuku was sitting half up. It was like he was in the infirmary or something. One after another his senses came back to him.

"Woah, there, easy," a voice said to him. That was All Might?

"Yes, sonny, you're lucky to be alive," that had to be Recovery Girl.

He looked over at All Might's direction and open his eyes. The skeletal form of All Might scared the holy hell out of him. If not for his tiredness he would have screamed like a little girl.

"Calm down. You guys really put me through the ringer. Especially, that last blast," All Might smirked padding Izuku's shoulder.

"How's Uraraka?" Izuku managed to say, but his voice was raspy.

"Look to your right," All Might pointed. Uraraka was sleeping peacefully. She was cute as hell too. He blushed a bit.

"She used up so much power that the system just ran out of juice to handle it. From our best guess, One For All is like exercising your entire body at once. No one can withstand that kind of exercise for any extended period of time. She hit that point and then dived into her reserves," Recovery Girl explained looking over her charts.

"She'll be fine though, right?" Izuku asked worried.

"Of course. She was exhausted. You on the other hand did some serious damage to yourself," All Might tapped his noggin.

"What did I do? I feel a little off, but fine otherwise," Izuku commented looking to Recovery Girl.

"Thank your luck you have super regeneration. The levels of concussive damage in your head was similar to individuals that survived bombs at point-blank range. We also had to surgically set your arm bones. Before the IV started feeding you, you had around 50% of the bones in your body were broken. You sustained a level a damage they I've only seen at the coroner's office. You're going to be sore and walking is going to tough until all your tendons heal," Recovery Girl explained.

"Holy crap. I didn't anticipate that level of damage," Izuku replied.

She smacked him with her clipboard, "No one usually does! Be more careful next time. Thanks to your quirk synergy your body has a habit of falling behind. Invest more time in your quirk provided immunities otherwise you're synergies will end up killing you!"

"Yes, ma'am," Izuku stated before she smacked him again.

"Don't take my advice lightly," she warned. He nodded instead this time.

"I would say that was harsh, but that was really reckless. Next time something like that happens be sure to know that you'll get a failed grade instead of us looking the other way," All Might warned as well. The skeleton of man left his side. Izuku sighed. A bit of hatred and annoyance crept in. He shoved aside his feelings. Hatred was not right. He looked over at Uraraka, "I'm sorry for pushing you so hard. I just feel like you're the only one that can keep up with me and I don't want to be alone at the top."


	26. Cataclysm at the Mall

Izuku was on his morning jog. Despite his best efforts to ignore his phone is was absolutely blowing up. Finally, he whipped out his phone to see what all the fuss was about. Folks had been chatting like crazy on his line group. He stopped in the middle of a park and sat down at a bench. Ever since the Sports Festival people recognized him. It was both good and bad. Adult seemed to have the worst reaction while children younger or the same age would praise him. Izuku didn't mind the attention.

He was scrolling up on the conversation trying to get a feel for what they were all talking about. "So a new mall opened. It was amazing reviews online and caters to just about anyone," Izuku mumbled reading. A few of his classmates were wondering if anyone wanted to join them. Izuku decided to chime in at that moment.

For awhile now most of the class had been part of his line group. In total 22 people were on it. Tetsutetsu and Kendo were also invited. Kirishima and Momo, respectively, had asked for them to be added. With the inclusion of so many classmates there was a lot of symbols to remember.

D20 for himself, Star for Yaoyorozu, Snowflake for Todoroki, Wheel for Iida, Space Ship for Uraraka, Apple Juice for Ashido, Cartoon Explosion for Bakugo, Rock for Kirishima, Fist for Ojiro, Stereo for Jirou, Lightning Bolt for Kaminari, Steel Plate for Tetsutetsu, Frog for Asui, Bunny for Koda, Sugar Cube for Satou, Hero Make for Kendo, Disco Ball for Aoyama, Grapes for Mineta, Raven for Tokoyami, Squid for Shoji, Bubblegum for Hagakure, and Tape for Sero. It was one hell of a list to remember.

D20: Sounds like we should have a class field trip. What do you think Momo?

Star: Yeah, that sounds like a great idea! What do you guys say? Hero Field Trip anyone?

The chat exploded with everyone expressing just how cool that would be.

Apple Juice: We should totally take pictures too! I don't know about you guys but I'd love to see everyone in their casual clothes!

Stereo: Casual style?! But I've only got one style: Punk.

A few people lol'ed and lmao'ed. Jirou was surprisingly talkative on the phone app. Really sassy too.

Apple Juice: Girl, we need to go shopping then.

Star: Oh, right I should bring some cash! … If you guys don't mind I'd like to cover the cash if that's a problem for anyone.

Space Ship: Phew! That makes it a lot easier for me to come have fun.

Explosion: Nah, I'm good. I take care of myself.

Rock: Manly as ever. I'm with Bakabro, but thanks for offering!

D20: Alright, let's aim to meet up around 2pm. Kendo! If anyone from class B is interested just let them know they're welcome.

Hero Mask: Will do. I'm sure a few folks would come.

Star: That's awesome! More the merrier!

The conversation then descended into fashion, what folks wanted to buy, and the cool hero shops. Izuku put his phone away and got back to running. His morning routine was a 10 km run, Telekinetic resistance training, and then quirk precision training. The 10 km run was fairly standard for most heroes. He could have upped the distance, but instead everyday he would just aim to improve his time. The telekinetic training had just been an idea at first but after the upgrade he got to it, the training was realized. Using his telekinesis, he would put weight onto his limbs. The weight was targetted and constant. Then he would practice martial arts, perform yoga, or use it like traditional weight lifting. This dual form of training was exhausting, but it trained two important things at once. Improving his quirk precision was always next. No matter how physically tired he was, his quirks that didn't rely on it still functioned just fine. Explosion was just about the only quirk he couldn't train while tired.

What Recovery Girl had said to him had resonated almost too hard. He had gained so many quirks so fast that his body never got the chance to protect against them. Which was why more than ever he had to train. There were also loads of abandoned buildings around the prefecture. It was a crime to practice quirks in public, but the police and few citizen ever ventured to the abandoned places.

\- Midoriya Household -

"Mom, I'm back," Izuku shouted walking through the door. Someone came into his sensory range. Unsconsciously, he tensed up. Mei came into view and tackle hugged him. "Morning Mei," Izuku smiled.

"Thought I should surprise you!" Mei stated before letting go. She was smiling looking up at him. The height difference was a bit more than normal. Last he checked he was at most 170 cm (5'7") tall.

"Am I getting taller?" Izuku bluntly asked passing her.

"Hmm, about 3.5 centimeters or so, I'd say," Mei replied sizing him up.

"The fact you can tell is kind of scary," Izuku stated before turning back to her, "Going to the mall today. Want to join me?"

Her smiled faded, "I was hoping we could get a chance to spend the weekend together before the Summer camp thing you guys are going on." She got a bit closer, "I mean you just had your birthday a couple of weeks ago."

He rose his eyebrow at that suggestion, "I'm sorry the mall was kind of improptu decision by Momo and I. A sort of last hoorah before hell week."

"Hell week? I thought it was going to be a reward for completing your exams?" Mei cocked her head.

"Oh I know better. Most of my classmates think this is going to be a relaxing get away. But I'm not that naive. This is going to be hell week," Izuku got close and caressed her face. "Join us at the mall and I'll make sure the whole weekend is yours," Izuku promised.

Mei sighed, "Its times like these that I think your priorities are a bit off, but you just want to hang with your friends and I can't be mad at you for that."

"Thank you. You won't regret it," Izuku smiled, "Its at 2:30 so we have some time to kill."

"I've got a few things on my mind that could kill time," Mei smirked. A wooden spoon swooshed in front of them.

"Not while you're still in my house and not on my watch," Inko stated with the most threatening glare he had ever seen.

They broke away from each other, "Alright. I get it. We'll try to get it PG."

"Good, did you need any spending money for this mall field trip?" Inko asked looking up at him.

"I'm good. Still haven't gone through what Endeavor paid me," Izuku replied.

"Wait, he paid you for your internship?" Mei asked.

"Yeah, he said something along the lines of 'You did real work out there MultiForce. For real work you need real compensation. Just don't tell UA or your friends, they might get jealous and tattle.' So he gave me a little more than a regular pro would get for a week's worth of work," Izuku explained pulling out his phone, "See?" He held up his account balance. Inko blinked a few times and then smiled.

"I'm glad to see that you're really becoming a hero. But could ya get injured a little less? I still worry about you," Inko replied before heading back into ktichen. She was making a soup of some kind. She really enjoyed cooking these days and even more so now that Izuku could eat for 5 people.

"Oh are those private conversations I see?" Mei pointed out before Izuku pulled his phone away.

"Yeah, been chatting with Katsuki and Kirishima. They want to know if I would be interested in light sparring after school. Told them they would have to be alright with Uraraka joining since she was first to ask," Izuku grinned from remembering.

"What about miss star?" Mei smirked knowing quite a few of their profile pictures.

Izuku felt a bit embarrassed and guilty about that one. He rubbed the back of his neck, "Oh...Um, we chat... A lot. She's cooped up at home so she chats with the girls or me." He was trying to read her expression before saying anything that would condemn him. It wasn't a romantic thing just two nerds. He took a deep breath and continued, "We talk about her quirk, my quirk, we do thought experiments, live experiments, and sometimes we just talk."

"Any normal girl should be worried, but seeing a bit of that normal Izuku coming through kind of assured me. Plus if you were chattin' her up like you do me. It wouldn't be a deal breaker right away," Mei smirked evilly before walking past him.

She sat down on the couch and padded the seat next to her. She looked back at him with a sort of a evil cunning look. A chill came down his spine. "Until we have to go, let's just enjoy a few movies," Mei stated. He nodded and sat down. It was good considering his muscles and quirks hurt from overuse.

\- Kiyashi Ward Mall -

With everyone being heroes in training they were all punctual. Everyone pretty much arrived at 2pm. A few exceptions were Katsuki and Izuku with Mei. The 'field trip' had somehow extended to 36 students in total.

Izuku whistled seeing everyone together, "Wow, we're one hell of a bunch. Any words class reps?" He looked to Kendo and Momo.

"Yeah, let the sight seeing commence!" Kendo cheered. Momo put up a finger halting the crowd of students, "If anyone needs any help, **within reason**, I'll help out. Now let's contribute to the economy!"

More than a few people shrugged before Kendo chimed in, "What she meant to say was let's get our shop on!" That brought up spirits again.

The mass of students broke down into 2-3 person groups. Folks with similar quirks and tastes joined up. Izuku, Mei, Katsuki, Momo, Uraraka, and Kirishima were all still one giant group.

"Momo, you'll get it down eventually," Izuku chuckled. Mei was to his right and Momo to his left.

"Maybe I need to spend some time being poor," Momo tapped her chin.

"As fun as that would be see, I won't recommend it, Yoyo," Katsuki chimed in from behind Izuku.

Izuku mouthed 'Yoyo'. Momo glanced back at him, "Why not? Don't appreciate the nickname either."

"Too bad buttercup. Hmm, how should I put this," Katsuki rubbed his chin.

Uraraka chimed in, "It wouldn't be authentic. Being poor isn't just not having any money. Its the hopelessness and relief that you can just make it another month. Everything tastes better when all you can afford is instant ramen."

"Yeah, she's right. I had to live alone for awhile at my workshop and it was depressing," Mei commented frowning from the memory.

"On that note, let's check out shoes. I need a new pair or two," Izuku stated.

"Same here," Momo stated.

"As much as I like Izuku trying on shoes, I think I'll go check out the t-shirts. What do you say, Rocky?" Katsuki smirked.

"Sure, I want to see if they have any Crimson Riot tees," Kirishima smiled following Katsuki.

"I've got to stick with Momo. She's my wallet after all," Uraraka chuckled.

"Have fun then, Uraraka," Katsuki waved as he walked away. Izuku did a double take. Did he just use her name? A normal regular name?!

"What did you do?" Izuku wondered.

"What do you mean?" Uraraka was to Momo's left.

"He called you by your name," Momo replied a bit annoyed.

She chuckled, "Oh that? He's been using my name since the Sports Festival. He just doesn't say names too much."

"What are you talking about? Every time I hear him speak he uses other people's name or rather nicknames," Izuku replied.

"Yeah, he called me Yoyo..." she clenched her fist a bit angry.

Uraraka giggled a bit, "I think its a clever play on your name. Its like Yaoyo, but just a bit short hand."

"Its feels deragotory. I don't mind Yaomomo or Yaoyorozu or even my name in some cases," she said her cheeks getting a light red dusting.

Mei didn't miss that detail. "Why don't we just talk to him?" Uraraka suggested, "Plus it'll give these two some time together." Uraraka pulled Momo by the arm. The look of surprise on Momo's face when Uraraka almost lifted her was priceless. Despite her cute size her raw power was comparable to Katsuki or himself.

"Maybe I was wrong about them. I like Uraraka she's a sweetheart," Mei commented before getting back to the task at hand, "I guess I could use a new pair of boots." Mei lifted up her foot and the sole almost separated.

"I think calling it a boot is giving it too much credit. That's a shoe with a sleeve," Izuku joked.

"Oh, shut it. I wear metal shoes at school, so I walk around in these every now and then," Mei smirked.

"How long have you had those?" Izuku asked.

"3 to 5 years," she sheepishly admitted.

"5 years?! I think its time to through in the towel and bury them," Izuku chuckled.

"Yeah, you're right. Why are you getting new shoes?" Mei wondered.

"I need two more running shoes and well... I think my shoes won't be fitting too much longer, so I want to get something I can grow into," Izuku explained. They entered the shoes store. It had all the popular brands on the walls and boxes upon boxes of shoes. There was even a special service offered for those that didn't have regular feet.

"Just how big are ya going to get?" Mei putting her hand above like she was going to measure him.

"I don't know. Last time I saw my father was when I was 5 so my memory is kind of fuzzy. Mom won't talk about him either," Izuku lamented sitting down on a bench. His current shoe size was 28 (10 US) but even now that was snug. If he was growing like a weed he would have to venture up a few centimeters.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know. Do you know anything about your father?" Mei wondered.

"His name was Hisashi and his quirk was fire breathing of some kind. That's what my mother said at least. But quirks are heriditary so unless I'm a mutation my father was someone else. A person I could not find no matter how desperately I looked," Izuku admitted.

"Maybe I can help," Mei offered.

"At this point my instinct tells me there's a reason I can't find anyone like me," Izuku replied with a twinge of sadness.

Mei knew what he meant but saying the words would hurt. No matter what happened between them he would always be her hero. No matter the odds she will always be rooting for him.

She dropped the topic and instead asked him about the latest hero news. It was a distraction from the forboding feeling in her gut.

\- A Few Hours Later -

Dusk was setting on the horizon. Beautiful oranges and reds streaked across the sky. The blue had almost completely subsided. Izuku and Mei had spent most of the day going store to store mostly browsing. Here and there they bought a few things. Along the way they had a chat with Kaminari, Asui, and Jirou. Somehow the resident rocker chick got him to buy a few band shirts and a leather jacket. Satou, Koda, and Tokoyami were hanging out at a ice cream parlour. Satou had convinced them to order an odd, but good combo. Strawbery mint with peanuts for Izuku. Chocolate blueberry with drizzled caramel for Mei. Despite it being an odd combo both of them were great. Hagakure, Momo, and Uraraka were all trying on summer dresses. Izuku was conned into being the judge of a good looking dress. Hagakure was the tough one until he asked if he could use his telekinesis on her. She was a bit more endowed than her invisible form implied. He'd have to apologize later to her.

Finally, the couple were walking by a coffee shop. It was a quaint establishment. It was all fun and games until the world was turned upside down.

A person entered his sensory field so fast there had been no time to stop him. "Hello, Midoriya, been awhile. Hasn't it?" a familiar sickly voice asked.

He looked over at Mei. Washed out blue hair, dried out lips, a piercing gaze, and the pale skin. This man could only be one person: Shigaraki. Except Shigaraki held Mei by the back of her neck. Izuku's entire line of power fired up.

The man hissed, "I wouldn't do that. You're eyes grow before your psychic powers engage. You might stop me, but she will be dead."

He relaxed. Sometimes cooperating with villains was the only route. "What do you want?" Izuku asked in a harsh tone.

"I just want to sit down and have a chat with, my Otouto," Shigaraki grinned. Izuku glared at him but gestured him to the coffee shop. They sat down at a further back seating from the people that walked by. Izuku had strategically sat down across from Shigaraki. The last thing he wanted to do was incite a riot or panic. Mei would live if he cooperated or so he hoped.

"Isn't that better, Izu-chan?" Shigaraki commented still holding firmly on her neck.

"What's with the little brother schtick?" Izuku asked still angry.

"Oh, that? You see lately I had an epiphany and then I connected the dots. Now I understand," Shigaraki was smiling like a madman. So in his case normally.

"What are you talking about?" Izuku was confused. Shigaraki could have been misleading him, but his speech was too clear and focused to be anything but misleading.

"You'll find out eventually. I just hope I get to see that look on your face when it comes crashing down," his words laced ever so delicately with venom.

Izuku had no reply. Instead he committed them to memory. "No funny quip or death threat? I really must have gotten under your skin," Shigaraki smirked.

"Get to your point, villain," Izuku stated coldly.

"You wound me, Otouto, I thought we shared more in common than using petty names like villain. I'd prefer Murderer or Handyman or … oh! I know Handmeister! That's a good insult too," Shigaraki laughed a bit before going straight faced when a waitress came over.

"What will you folks be having?" she asked completely oblivious to the hostage situation. Which was good. The more time Izuku bought, the more Shigaraki would let down his guard.

"Herbal tea please," Izuku replied.

"Coffee! I'll take a coffee, black," Mei spouted off rather quickly. She was panicking, but he couldn't blame her. She wasn't trained for this at all.

Shigaraki in the most normal voice, "I'll just have a glass of water if you don't mind."

"We don't mind. I'll get that all for you right away," The waitress bowed before leaving. Izuku and Shigaraki half bowed in reply.

"I always find it odd how NPC's can be so oblivious. Lucky for her I wasn't flagged," Shigaraki commented before looking back to Izuku. His gamer talk was normal for Izuku. The green haired teen had always considered Shigaraki to be cunning, but dealing with it first hand was a different ball game. Shigaraki continued, "I've got some questions. Questions I think you can answer. You after all represent heroes and understand the public well enough."

Ideology questions are both good and dangerous territories to tread with the mentally unstable, "Well, I've got a few minutes so interview away."

"That's the spirit! You remember our recent outting?" Izuku nodded, "Well, Stain made the headlines. He. Was. Everywhere. Why? Why not me?" Shigaraki asked. Confidence issues were the worst. Izuku really didn't have any other choice but to be honest.

"Your motivations aren't clear. I understand Stain and what he stands for. You I don't understand and I don't know what you stand for," Izuku replied.

"Its a little-!" Mei tried to speak before he hissed at her, "Quiet. You are a bargaining chip. Bargaining chips DO. NOT. TALK." She nodded a few tears going down her face. Izuku wasn't mad, he was furious.

"Where were we? Oh right! … Hmm, interesting, so you're saying that they just don't know the guildmaster well enough? This gives me a few ideas. Question number two: I've read some online boards and people just don't find me... **frightening**," Shigaraki really emphasized that last word.

"Well, you put hands on your face and they look fake. I don't think anyone has seen your quirk in action. But most of all your name inspires nothing," Izuku bluntly replied.

"Ooooh," Shigaraki hissed in air like he was in pain, "That hurts. Really it does. But that's great to know. I've got even more schemes churning away in my head."

"I'm happy I can help. Let me ask you one question," Izuku offered.

"You've been a generous host I'll allow it," Shigaraki smiled.

"How do you plan on getting out of here without being captured?" Izuku looked him right in the eyes.

Shigaraki _laughed_. "Its ironic actually. I have to believe in your humanity," he grinned.

_What? No exit strategy? He's smarter than that. Which means he's not alone_, Izuku thought. Without powering up his sensory range was only a few meters. So that didn't help him in the slightest.

"One last question: would you like my quirk?" Shigaraki asked grinning madly.

"What?! Of course not. I would never want your quirk," Izuku shot him a glare.

"Good. I'll remember that next we meet," Shigaraki looked up to see Uraraka standing to Izuku's right.

Uraraka only took a moment to recognize him. She froze unsure of what to do. Izuku after all had the situation under control. Leaving could very well make him target her. Somehow in this tense situation she had been rendered powerless again.

The villain stood up and calmly walked away. Izuku immediately extended his range. "Uraraka tend to her. I'm going after him!" Izuku jumped from his seat and ran.

"Izuku!" Uraraka called out to him but it was too late. The brunette saw the look on Mei's face. She had just been placed on death's door. She wasn't trained to handle that kind of pressure. Uraraka doubted she could either, but at least she won't breakdown from the death threat. When she got close to Mei the pink haired girl clung onto her and just cried. Uraraka knew Izuku should have been there, but his pride and rage got the best of him.

The race to follow Shigaraki was on. The man was quick. He weaved in and out of crowds with little effort. Izuku had to almost run to keep up with him through the mall. A few whispers about Izuku, but nothing troubling yet. No one was the wiser that he was running about. And it needed to stay that way.

Shigaraki dipped out of the mall through a series of employee only hallways. Izuku was hot on his heels. When the man officially broke from the mall he started running. God damn was he fast. Izuku had to apply a layer and a half of empowerment just to keep up with him.

Shigaraki had ran them into the slums of Kiyashi Ward. Rundown buildings galore. Not another hero in sight. This is the point Izuku should have turned back, but he was determined. His rage wanted to see the man dead. His pride told him he can't let this man escape.

Izuku had caught Shigaraki down a long dead end alleyway. Shigaraki was looking at the concrete wall. "As long as your within range of me, your powers don't work. Give up Shigaraki!" Izuku commanded.

"Not as heroic as I first believed. Stain was right about you. You're the real deal and when you think you can apprehend without using force you'll take it," Shigaraki turned around, "But you see giving up without a fight just ain't my thing. You were hoping for that weren't you? Use self-defense against me? As you probably figured out, I'm not alone."

The alley behind Izuku started to heat up. He turned to see blue flame streaming at him. Izuku held up his hand and green flame just as large came out. The two flames collided and fought for dominance. Both users gave at about the same time.

"Hey, kiddo, color me impressed. Its been awhile since I met someone that could match my flames," the villain with burn tissue across his neck and under his eyes said. Izuku recognized him. Dabi, the arsonist villain.

"Let's see what color his blood is!" A woman's voice called out from right behind him. Wait, behind him! He turned to see her, but it was too late. A knife drove into his left thigh. He lashed out at her, but she was agile. His fury was only stoked harder. He pointed at her and pushed his palm at her. A wall of psychic energy slammed her into the wall. His skin was beginning to spark with green lightning. One For All was reacting to his will. Instead of getting set amounts like his quirks was used to getting it was as much as he wanted to put into it.

Two Shigaraki's entered his sensory. They were perfect clones. Both of them sprinted at him. Somehow that girl didn't show up on his sensory. The moment he looked away she was gone. "Begone!" Izuku held out his hand and swapped to Explosion. He brought his fingers forward to create a sort of loose cone. The blast came out like a tank round. The first clone was obliterated. Dabi had to dodge as well since the clone didn't stop the blast too much.

Another shell was fired. The other clone perished. "You really are impressive," Shigaraki running at him. He leveled his hand at the man and hesitated. He didn't know if this would kill, but he couldn't risk it. The pale man came in with his fist and hit Izuku right in the ribs. He was strong for his size. The bone broke from the hit. Then another pain. That broken rib had punctured another organ. Namely his lung.

Izuku jumped away wheezing when he came to a stop. Another stab came out of nowhere. His senses being on edge let him dampen the blow. Instead of hitting his neck she got his shoulder blade. A single broad explosion was sent at Shigaraki. Then he turned to face her. He reached out with his psychic strength and held her. The grip was so strong her lungs could not expand. She was suffocating.

Then a dozen Shigaraki's repelled from the rooftops. They're fingers slowed their fall. The decay effect wasn't particularly strong from each of the 12. No more than an inch of concrete was melted from where they're fingers touched. Still a dangerous level of missing skin and nerves.

He let go of her and had to coat all there hands as they rushed him. The original joined the fray as well. The clones were about half as strong as Shigaraki himself. Still defending against this many blows was hard. Letting off a lethal explosion or fire was out of the question.

His psychic strength could only do so much before it was exhausted. Retreat sounded like a good option now. Dabi would make that difficult and so would the psycho chick. He had to clear them away somehow. An area of effect ability would work, but it threatened to kill him if he didn't back away. At this point he didn't have much of a choice. Otherwise they could just keep whittling him down. He swapped to Hellflame. Hopefully Dabi being a fellow fire user would let him see the signs of Burnout.

The air grew hotter. Papers and other low temperature flamables in the alleyway ignited. Dabi analyzed the area and he saw the play. "Boss, watch out he's going to explode!" Dabi shouted. All 13 Shigaraki's retreated in a heartbeat.

Izuku held off a second hoping a few of the clones would make a mistake. Unfortunately, no one budged. "I hope you like a bit of heat," Izuku deadpanned as the flames on his body expanded. The clones retreated further. Much like a DBZ powerup, he screamed to the sky and brought his elbows in, fist clenched. His flames exploded nearly to the top of the alley. About 5 meters (16ft) in all direction everything had been reduced to ash.

Izuku used that moment to apply Force Nullification and swap back to Explosion. A sole knife flew right at him, "Something to remember me by!" the blonde haired psycho stated. The knife sunk into his shoulder millimeters above his heart. If not for bendeing his knees a little bit before flying into the air, he would have died.

The numerous clones of Shigaraki evaporated into this gray ooze. The rest of them just watched. The police had already cleared out the mall. He decided to go back on foot. While in midair he pulled out the knife. It was a fairly normal switchblade. He pocketed the knife. He'll have to give that to the police later. Much later. Maybe never if he really thought out it.

Thankfully, the knife wounds closed too quickly to leave any blood on his shirt or pants. It was a spot of blood in truth, but not easy enough to notice for the normal person.

He was outside. The cops approached him first, "Sir, this is an active crime scene. I'm going to have to ask you to stay away."

"I'm Izuku Midoriya. I was there when Shigaraki attacked," Izuku pointed out.

"Then why weren't you there when we got here?" the officer questioned.

"I was tracking him, sir," Izuku replied.

"Hmm, I'll go get the detective. For now meet up with your friends," the police officer let him through. Izuku rushed through the mall to see his whole class standing around chatting minus Uraraka and Mei. Upon seeing him they swarmed him. "Are you okay, man?" Kaminari was the first to speak up.

"Yeah, we got worried that you bit off more than you can chew," Ashido smirked at his expense.

"I have to agree that was reckless of you to pursue them by yourself," Iida chastised him.

"Next time don't forget to bring me along. I'll be more than happy to crack their skulls," Katsuki boasted.

"What good are friends if you don't take us along?" Kirishima asked punching Izuku's shoulder.

"Yeah, I agree with him. We're a class right?" Satou spoke up chastising him again.

"I'm sorry guys. I just got so worked up. I pulled a Bakugo," Izuku chuckled.

Katsuki's normal range of emotions came back, "What's that supposed to mean!" His hands exploded. The rest of the class laughed. Izuku guessed Momo just couldn't hold back her worry anymore. She gave him a quick hug, "We were so worried. I can't have my vice rep dying on my watch."

"Hey, now, no one is killing me anytime soon," Izuku pointed out.

"You almost died the other week. You're just as fragile as the rest of us. Now get over yourself before I put that big head of yours into the pavement," Katsuki threatened.

Izuku put up his arms, "Alright you got me. Now where's Uraraka and Mei?" More than a few faces soured from that question.

Momo was inclined to answer, "Uraraka took her home. May I have a word?" Izuku nodded. They walked out of view. He turned to face her. What came next would surprise him for months to come. Momo wound up the fastest, hardest gut punch he had ever received. The sound of him getting struck and falling to the ground echoed throughout the whole mall now that it was empty.

She waited for him to recover and stand back up. "Uraraka, told me to put a good one into ya. Her words not mine. But she's right. What were you thinking? You should have known better," Momo chastise him. For some reason her chastising him was effective as hell.

"My rage. My quirk allowed my rage to flow until I could not think straight anymore. I'm sorry. Sometimes my quirk escapes me," Izuku admitted holding his stomach.

"Then that will be the first thing you fix hell week. No more will you use your quirk as an excuse. You're going to get control over it and that's final," Momo commanded.

"I understand. I will do my best," Izuku replied.

"No you won't do your best. You will go beyond. Plus Ultra style," Momo smirked. She grabbed his arm and pulled him back to the group of students.

"Rough," Kaminari stated seeing Izuku.

"Remind me never to piss of Yaoyorozu," Jirou smirked. A few people nodded in agreement.

"Rozu, is a strong furious woman," Katsuki said with a blank stare.

Izuku walked over to a table and sat down. He laid his head on the table. That punch hurt more than it should have. Either she's way stronger than she looks or she knows a ton about human anatomy. His phone vibrated.

It was Mei. 'Meet me at the workshop later tonight.' He was going to ask for clarity, but later tonight meant after dinner. Or at least that was the agreed upon time they had sorted out after a few misunderstandings. The police investigator came over to Izuku. "Got some time for questions?" the man asked. He was the cat head officer.

"Sure, fire away," Izuku sat up straight in the chair.

\- The Workshop -

Izuku was more than a bit worried receiving but a single text message. It was well into the night. Just getting out of his house was already a stealth operation. He dreaded coming back as it would be like some kind of sucidal stealth op. However, she wanted to see him and he wanted to match sure she was okay.

He knocked on the door. It was locked. Reasonable considering she was just the hostage of a hostage negotiation. "Let yourself in," Mei said from behind the door. She sounded sad and distraught.

Izuku's telekinesis had mostly recovered by this point. He felt for the tumblers in the lock and more or less picked it. The sound of the bolt relaxing and then he was in. He swung the door open and saw her sitting on the bed. Her arms were wrapped around her legs. If he didn't know better she was still shaking a bit.

He strode over to her, but she extended out her arm, "Stop. Far enough." That wasn't good.

Izuku wondered if he was going to be in for the long haul. So he made a telekinetic chair and sat down. As long as she didn't keep him for 3 or so hours the chair would hold.

She huffed a few times. Mei was trying to calm down. Based on the red eyes and tired look she had; she had done a lot of crying today.

She took a deep breath, "You know why I wanted to date you?"

"We had a connection," Izuku replied.

"We did. But for me it was more than that. You pushed me to be the best me I could be. I really wanted to give that back to you, but after the USJ and the Sports Festival I thought: 'there's no way I can help you.' I was the first and one of the two people that know your quirk affects your head. I believed you could keep it under control, but you can't. I hate just sitting on the sidelines watching your quirk pull you apart. You just aren't the man that said you love me," Mei let a few more tears flow. She took some deep breaths to calm down again.

"Are you saying-" Izuku started, but she put a finger up. He shut up again.

"I was more than willing to work past that. Hell I'm still willing to. No matter what I'll always be your friend. But today being at his mercy made something very clear to me. Not only will I be your weakness, but I'll also never be able to live to the fullest. Especially, not when I'll have to be on edge everyday and everywhere I go. Maybe if I was a famous inventor and I could feel reasonably safe all the time then it wouldn't bother me. But were just high school students! The target on your back is so large that only those willing to put their life on the line should be near you," Mei sniffled taking a few more breaths.

"You're not my weakness. Do you really want this?" Izuku asked.

"Really?! What would Yaoyorozu have done in that situation? Or Uraraka? Or what if he had to deal with just you? Do you think he would have attacked and tried to take YOU hostage? Of course not you're so dangerous to villains that they need to outthink you and resort to some nasty tactics," Mei was a bit angry but she took some time to calm down.

"So what do you want to do?" Izuku asked knowing the answer.

"Probably that one thing both of us feared and knew could happen to this relationship," she took a sharp deep breath, "I'm breaking up with you, Izuku."

That hit him, but not quite as hard as he anticipated. He looked down. No tears no deep pain. "Its just like I thought. I'm sorry because the day you gain control of your quirk you'll feel it. It will be delayed, but ten times harder hitting," Mei chuckled at the absurdity of it all.

He stood up, "I'm... I should go huh?" The chair was dispelled.

She shook her head. Then she padded the spot next to her. "I know this is kind of mixed signals, but could you hold me for awhile?"

Izuku was going to refuse initially, but the hero deep within told him that sometimes people just need comfort. He sat down. She leaned up against him. Reflexively he put one arm around her. She let out a deep relieved sigh. Her head was on his shoulder.

For an hour he caressed her hair and let her rest against him. By end of the hour she had been snoring softly. Mei slept like the dead so moving her around would be easy. He got up and reorientated her so she was sleeping properly on the bed. He knelt down beside her bed. Izuku swept the hair from her eyes. For just this moment he surpressed all his quirks. The passive parts of quirk could only be dampened so far.

"I'm sorry. I hope you'll at least forgive me when I get my headspace figured out," he sighed, "What am I doing?" He sighed again, "Being honest I guess. I know we'll never date in the future, but don't be a stranger. I'm a pretty good shoulder to cry on." He laughed.

"I still love you, but you're right I do have a huge target on my back. Just promise me that if you're ever lonely that you at least try to seek someone out. Doesn't have to be me, but Uraraka doesn't mind talking or Ashido she loves to talk, hell even Kirishima is an amazing guy to talk with. Point is class 1A will always be your friends," he got up after his little speech.

"Goodbye, Mei, its going to be awhile before you see me again," Izuku stated shutting off the light and locking the door behind him. The walk home left him with nothing but shame. He didn't even care when his mother woke up. She was pretty mad until she saw his look. She wanted him to talk about it, but he wasn't in the mood. He just wanted sleep and end this horrible day.

* * *

Drakonite227:

Sorry if you really enjoyed their relationship, but I felt like this was the realistic way to go. As for him getting over it you'll just have to see.

As for her reasons. I feel they were fairly solid. She knew she had to break up with him cause he was just content with things as they were.

If anyone is wondering, Otouto is japanese for 'little brother'.

Last additional note, Himiko's power is weird. At this point I'm going to presume her ability to erase her presence comes from her quirk. So I decided to extend that to Izuku's TK. It doesn't make sense since his is a physical sensing ability and hers seems mental (?). Instead her quirk in my story provides her a sort of chameleon affect against quirks.


	27. Hell Week - Monday

The bus was a flurry of activity. Ashido was just ecstatic to go on a field trip into the mountains with everyone. Kaminari and Kirishima shared her sentiment. But the world just felt a bit hollow. As if all Izuku could see was white and black. Momo and him were at the front of the bus. This was mostly because they were the class reps. Momo had paired people up with the person she figured they liked most right now. The only odd pairing was Tokoyami and Mineta. Although, it did keep both of them quiet, so he guessed it was a win for Tokoyami and a proper place for Mineta.

Aizawa sat across the lane from them. He was doing his best not looking absolutely annoyed. It was failing. He tapped the driver's shoulder. "Hey!" the pro stood up and quickly everyone went silent, "How about we stretch our legs a bit?"

"That sounds great! We've been on the road for 5 hours," Kaminari whined.

"It would be relaxing to get out and stretch," Momo agreed.

"Then its settled. There's a nice spot up ahead to rest," Aizawa stated flopping back down. Izuku rose an eyebrow. The plan had been set in motion. He wasn't in the mood to stop it.

A few minutes later the bus stopped by the side of the road. Momo made sure everyone filed out in an orderly fashion. Her and Izuku were the last to leave. Izuku's vision spotted a cabin in the distance. His vision scoped and his instinct confirmed it. That was the lodge they were staying at. He followed the road ahead of them and found that path too long. It struck him. This was the starting line.

"Momo, this is it," he whispered to her. She tensed up before taking a deep breath to relax. Katsuki and Todoroki seemed to be the only other two vigilant enough to notice as well.

Izuku along with a few other students walked up to the rails. The view was breathtaking. Three people came into his sensory area. Two adults and someone else, a kid by the size of him.

Two women wearing cat paws and cute outfits came out of a car parked on the cliff side.

"Hey, Eraser!" the brunette cat girl announced.

"Long time no see," Aizawa replied bowing.

"Lock on with these sparkling gazes!" the brunette started there introduction bit. Izuku's ear perked up at the catch phrase. If he didn't know better that was Mandalay of the Wild, Wild Pussycats. A well known hero team that specialized in mountain rescue operations.

"Stingingly cute and catlike!" the blonde cat girl added in.

In tandem they cheered, "Wild, wild Pussycats!" They finished their introduction with a power rangers pose. Most of the class just looked at them stunned.

"These are the pro heroes who will be helping us during the summer camp. Meet the Pussycats," Aizawa stated. A grin was slowly but surely showing up on his face. _Oh no,_ Izuku thought.

Izuku chimed in fulling in any gaps his classmates might have, "They're a four person hero team. They're specialty is mountain rescue operations. I believe them been around for 12-" Pixie Bob lounged over to him and put her paw into his face. Her presence was kind of intimidating, despite the fact he was about her height.

"We're 18 at heart," She threatened.

Izuku pushed away the paw, "You're 18 at heart."

"Everyone say hello to your new instructors," Aizawa requested.

Most of the class in unison, "Nice to meet you."

Mandalay waved her hand to the forest below the cliffs, "We own all the land out here. You'll all be saying in our lodge just over there." It was the same one Izuku saw earlier.

"So the fun begins," Izuku whispered just loud enough for Pixie Bob to hear. She gave him a wink before sneaking around the class.

"If the lodge is over there why did.. we.. stop here?" Uraraka asks before it dawned on her.

"You don't think?" Asui chimed in.

"No way," Satou said shaking his head.

Sero was getting on their train of thought, "Maybe we should get back to the bus? Fast."

"Yeah, that's sounds like a great idea," Kaminari agreed.

"Its 930am right now. If you're fast... maybe around noon?" Mandalay added with an evil grin.

Izuku looked over at the kid. Based on his expression he didn't care for this charade either or maybe it was deeper than that. A few of his classmates started to recede to the bus. "No way is that the plan," Kirishima said in disbelief.

That was the signal for the class to get running. Izuku huffed and continued to lean on the railing.

"Kitties who don't make it by 1230 won't get any lunch!" Mandalay announced before Pixie Bob went into action.

The ground near the bus burst and swallowed up the whole class. Fortunately, Izuku was far enough away not to get swallowed up. A few of his classmate were freaking out as they went over the cliff side. The dirt that came at Izuku was pushed up his telekinetic bubble and over. He was the only one left on the cliff side. Mandalay looked over the cliff side next to him. She shouted down below, "Since this is our private land we'll allow everyone to use their quirks! You have three hours to get through the beast's forest!"

"Now what are we going to do about you?" Pixie Bob smirked seeing Izuku still standing.

"We heard about you from Nezu. You're the all star of the first years. You've even made a hell of a name for yourself already. Even Lemillion is looking forward to meeting you," Mandalay stated getting into a combat stance.

"It'll take a bit more than sand to push me down there. This is supposed to be a team building exercise right? I mean look at them go already," Izuku pointed to his fellow classmates.

"That's why you're going down later. The Pussycats would like to see first hand what you're capable of," Aizawa stated letting down his capture tape. Another adult joined the fray. Based on the size it must be Tiger.

"We also figured you helping your classmates would make it too easy," Mandalay smirked, "So we're hoping to take some of your strength away before sending you into the beasts!" Green lightning arced over his body. He dodged Tiger's first punch. The man could move like a noodle so he had to get some space from him. Izuku was grinning. Fighting three pros would be exciting.

\- The Beast's Forest -

Ochako hit the ground with her fellow classmates. She got up rubbing her ass. "Ouch, that really hurt," She complained. Midoriya had to still be above them. If anything he was the one expecting this turn of events. Next time she saw him she had a few choice words.

Looking up she saw a strand of capture tape fly by before it was pulled back. Izuku was nowhere in sight. _He must be going up against sensei and Mandalay,_ Ochako thought focusing her attention back to the forest.

"Beast's Forest? Sounds like something out of Dragon Quest," Kaminari commented padding his clothing. Mineta burst into the woods. He had to go apparently. Then he screamed. Ochako was the first to react. Her Zero Coat activated and she bolted. A giant creature of some kind had scared him. It was about to attack. She tackled him out of the way.

Bakugo and Todoroki were next to act. Ice encased the beast before Bakugo blow up the whole monster. Bakugo glared at Todoroki. Ochako felt _them_ rubble the ground as more approached, "We've got more incoming!"

"Let's form up and get ready. We need to make a beeline for the lodge and get out of here!" Momo instructed.

"What about Midoriya?" Jirou asked hearing the battle above them.

"He can handle himself! Let's see who can kill the most!" Bakugo shouted running headlong into the forest.

"That's the spirit! Let's do this!" Kirishima ran after Bakugo.

Ochako took point with Bakugo and Todoroki. "Shoji and Jirou gives us a heads up if either of sense them! Bakugo, Uraraka, and Aoyama you're the finishers. Strike for maximum damage. Everyone else suppress and divert!" Momo took to the field like a general of an army.

"Fine with me!" Bakugo grinned. Todoroki nodded.

"Bakugo take the heavier targets! I'll smash the lighter ones!" Ochako suggested. Bakugo nodded breaking away from her.

The student body ran as a spread out group. The roar of multiple beasts slowed them down. "I spotted two to our right and three to the left," Shoji announced. He had multiple eyes and ears out.

"3 more are coming further away," Jirou adding pulling a jack from the ground.

Iida and Ochako broke off to the left. Todoroki and Bakugo broke off to the right. A 60/40 split of the student body ensued.

"Hagakure, bait the distant ones," Momo requested.

"Ashido, run interference when she gets close enough," Momo commanded smirking, "Time to bring out the big guns."

"Uraraka we're up first! Recipro Burst!" Iida called as he rocketed down the field. His kick sailed through two legs of a bear like beast. Ochako put 10% into her Zero Coat. She flew through the air and drop kicked right through the beast's body. The beast crumbled. _Earth... Pixie Bob_, Ochako realized.

"They're made of rock and stone. Don't hold back!" Ochako called out. She doubled back and swiped another beast.

"Tsu, you're turn!" Ochako called out. Asui didn't hesitate to wrap up the floating stone beast. Iida was the hammer coming from above and smashed it.

Two beasts followed Hagakure. The third one broke away. Kirishima and Satou were on it. Kirishima held back the beast and attacked it. Satou eat a handful of sugar cubes. The man's shirt burst from his power up. Then he uppercutted the beast so hard it's head came off. They exchange high fives.

Yaomomo had made a freaking cannon. Ashido swiped acid across the limbs of the two titanic beasts. The acid weakened the rock formations. They dropped down. The sound of two cannon shots rung through the air. Two more beasts were shattered.

Bakugo and Todoroki made quick work of two beasts. A dozen more roars ripped across the valley. Ochako paled this was going to be a gauntlet event. Momo must have had the same idea, "Press on! They're endless!"

\- On the Cliff -

Around 25 minutes had past since Aizawa, Tiger, and Mandalay had engaged him. It only took him a few minutes to realize this was a marathon competition. Conversing strength would be key. Despite Aizawa inability to cancel out his quirk, the pro did manage to find out his quirk wasn't completely useless.

5 minutes ago he had tried to use his flame, but Aizawa erased it. Or rather shut it off and there was no way he could override the quirk lock down. Explosions weren't dangerous in the least bit to Tiger with his elasticity. Using his Full Body power up he had found the minimum amount to keep up with Tiger. This was still draining him at about 2% per minute, but that was much better than the 8% per minute he started at.

Mandalay was in his head constantly. He didn't get a moment to himself. More importantly her telepathy could mess with his telekinesis. Not only did the psychic screams hurt like hell, but they disrupted power stockpile and his quirk space. Tiger and Aizawa proved to be quite the pair to fight. Tiger could take explosions with no damage and Aizawa ran interference. Mandalay would occasionally attack too when Aizawa overreached.

A chuck of capture tape wrapped around his arm. Aizawa pulled. Izuku resisted having nearly as much strength as the pro. Aizawa was strong, but he was nothing like Tiger or Endeavor. Right now his strength was adjust to match Aizawa and his speed adjusted to match Tiger. Even at full power there was no way to out power Tiger.

The green-haired teen grabbed tape with his other hand. He applied Force Nullification. The quirk's effect ran up the tape line. He could feel Aizawa touching it. So he pushed again extending the effect. Aizawa must have noticed right away. He threw the capture tape into the air.

Then a screech in his head. He winced, but gritted his teeth through it. The same arm that was captured grabbed onto the tape. Moving the tape was like controlling a whip or a lasso. He cracked it forward before sending it behind him. Tiger bent out of the way. The tape was stopped by Mandalay. She held it in her paw. Aizawa was also holding it. Together they pulled. This knocked him off balance. For a moment flame was unlocked.

Hellflame was switched on. A purple flame knife came from his hand. Then the quirk was off, but objects made could persist. He swung the knife and sliced through the carbon tape. The carbon melted at the point of contact. He destroyed the knife. It was already leaving a light burn.

The three pros came at him all at once. Tiger was the worst to dodge. Just moving out of the way wasn't good enough. The only way to truly dodge was get outside of melee range. Mandalay wasn't much of a true fighter like Aizawa or Tiger. But her contribution would not be overlooked.

Psychic humming. Humming... Not enough to stop power stockpile, but it prevented him from focusing with his telekinesis. Izuku sent out a burst of psychic energy. Mandalay and Aizawa were pushed back.

"Just how much force can this kid let out?" Mandalay asked.

Tiger pounced. Izuku had to jump back again. In all the commotion he had forgotten about Pixie Bob. Mostly because she was talking to herself and looking over the cliff side. He must have been only a few feet from her.

He held out his palm at the two vulnerable pros. A paw out of nowhere latched onto his extended arm. She gripped down and pivoted. Izuku had nullified a portion of his weight to keep up with Tiger earlier. Thanks to one of his arms being trapped he wasn't able to cancel the quirk and get his weight back. Another paw came up and added to the force. Pixie Bob picked him right off the ground and spun him. "Forgot about me didn't ya!" she smirked as she made another rotation. This time he was really picking up speed. Just as the third rotation begun she let go. Izuku was launched into the air like he was Bowser and Pixie Bob was Mario.

Izuku careened through a half dozen trees before stopping on a big one. "That hurt. Holy crap did that hurt," Izuku twitched planted into a tree a little bit. His slight moving dislodged him. He fell long enough that he heard a crunch from his bones. Broke his right leg from the fall. He stood up on one leg as the other healed.

He was around 40 minutes behind the rest of the class. If Momo was pushing them as hard as she could they were very far ahead of him. A few roars caught his attention.

A beast of stone and rock stared him down. It was a dragon like creation. "I don't suppose you'll back down if I ask nicely?" Izuku chuckled focusing his mind now that it was his to freely use.

The rock beast was larger than the bus they came in on. A claw came at him and it was fast. The green-haired teen leapt out of the way. The tree he had been next to had got cut down. Basically sheared right at the ground. "Okay, so that things no joke. I hope it likes to chase because I'm not fighting you," Izuku got up and began to run.

The trees were more of a suggestion to the Rock Dragon. It barreled through tree after tree without any slow down really. It was also gaining on his current pace. _So I have to fight that thing?_ Izuku thought grimacing.

_First order of business see if those wings are for show and if not ground it,_ Izuku nodded pivoting hard and blasting off at the dragon.

A massive claw came down at him. He double blasted it. The first layer of stone had been peeled off. The claw still came down. Izuku leapt out of the way just before it hit him. He frowned that could have been gruesome.

Looking to the sky he saw his window. The green-haired teen rocketed into the air and just out the treeline. The great beast flapped its wings hard and _picked _off the ground. "Oh come on! How does that work?!" Izuku complained as the giant lizard got up to his level. It was slower in the air. He had the advantage in the sky. Grounding this colossal beast would be difficult. Pixie Bob must have used harder rock like granite and quartz so this thing could take a beating.

He flew past it and bombarded it's sides and wings. The dragon roared in pain. If not for his adrenaline and steel nerves that would have been terrifying. The beasts tail and head could still move quite quickly. Izuku found this out when the blunted end of the dragon's tail collided with him. The rock tail broke nearly every rib on his right side. That made his vision go hazy.

"Time to ground you," Izuku gritted his teeth. He shot straight up. The lodge was an hours walk from him still. He made sure to put the sun to his back. _Pixie Bob must be controlling this one directly so her senses are probably connected to it!_ Izuku grinned priming his arms. The dragon looked up and away. That confirmed it. Like a missile he rocketed back to the dragon. He flipped in midair and landed squarely on his back. The impact force from him knocked it down a few meters (~9-16 ft). He cupped his hands right at the dragon's spine. Just around the point where the wings connected.

"If this doesn't kill you at least you won't be able to fly anymore!" Izuku shouted as the explosion flashed green and then went off.

Izuku and the dragon were free falling. He was above the dragon. Shaking his head he regained control of the situation. The dragon was still writhing and roaring. The green-haired teen shot down at the dragon. He thrust his fist into the rock and aimed the other hand to the sky. A third of his remaining stockpile was put into the explosion. Roughly 20%.

Explosion on average consumed 1.5%. That already netted him a 46% improvement. So 20% came out to a 29.47 times increase. Or in other words more than enough force to break nearly every bone in his arm and dislocate his shoulder. 10Kg of TNT was nearly his maximum force with Explosion. That explosion was made at 3kg before amplification.

The explosion rattled the ground and the blast wave was visible for hundreds of feet. To say the least both Midoriya and the dragon hit the ground. His right arm was shot. Regeneration had no more fuel. The dragon was struggling to get up. The fact the blast and impact didn't kill it was a testament to its raw power.

Izuku jumped off the dragon. He held his right arm. The regeneration was doing something but nothing too significant. He'll have to bide his time. Letting loose another attack of that magnitude would be reckless. The first one was already reckless. He gripped his arm and thought about what he had done.

Even a doubling of Explosion could hurt. Which was about 3%. He decided he need to take some time and figure out how to apply stockpile again. It annoyed him that it was set and forget before. Now he had to actively control the input. If he had to guess the largest explosions so far would have been 20Kg of TNT per arm or 50ish kg combined. The one that almost killed him was probably around 200 kg from both arms. Which made sense that explosion had his heart in it and pushed beyond.

The dragon wasn't nearly as fast before. If Izuku had to guess Pixie Bob was deaf right now. _Time to run!_ Izuku thought going for the lodge.

\- At the Lodge -

"I can't believe how late it is," Kaminari whined as they broke into the clearing that had the lodge. Everyone looked worn out and tired.

"You guys said it would take 3 hours," Kirishima complained seeing Aizawa and Mandalay. Pixie Bob was around to, but she was pretend fighting?

"Oh I'm sorry it was 3 hours for us," Mandalay giggled.

"I actually thought it would take them longer," Pixie Bob commented despite being distracted.

Ochako was standing next to Iida, Bakugo, and Todoroki. The rest of the class was behind them sitting or limping. "You guys didn't have much trouble with my earth beasts as I thought you would. Especially you four," Pixie pointed to Ochako and guys around her. She licked her lips, "I would have called dibs on any of your three, but I've got someone else that looks absolutely tantalizing."

Aizawa whispered to Mandalay, "Was she always like that?"

"She just getting a little desperate. She's that ripe age after all," Mandalay shrugged.

"What about Midoriya?" Kirishima asked pointing behind him.

"He'll make it one way or another," Aizawa waving off their concern.

"Are you guys hungry?" Mandalay asked and the whole class cheered.

"Before that. Get your gear and luggage off the bus. We start for real tomorrow," Aizawa directed before heading indoors. He stopped at the door when he heard someone speak up.

"I doesn't feel right just abandoning Midoriya out there," Ojiro spoke up.

"I'm not going to stop you if you want to help him. But you'll get less rest and food than the others if you do," Aizawa warned. That seemed to seal the deal for the numerous classmate that really didn't want to sacrifice those things.

"So you won't stop us? Then I'm going back for him. Its just not manly to let him suffer while I get to relax," Kirishima made a fist and turned around. This selfless act again made them hesitate on their decision.

Bakugo sighed, "From the sound of that blast earlier, he's down one arm. Whatever he's fighting isn't a run of the mill robot or a two bit thug. Anyone that wants to go know that you're facing something a pro would struggle with." Bakugo of all people turned around and joined Kirishima. His arms were hurting too and his quirk must have been running on low.

"If Kiri thinks its the right thing to do then I'm game too. Plus if I go he'll have to owe me one," Ashido grinned cracking her knuckles.

That was about it to join the rescue operation. Everyone else sighted quirks were shot to without food they would be of no help. Iida was still torn and so was Ochako. A part of her kind of wanted him to suffer a little. He needed to be brought down a peg or two. As for Iida she could understand. Midoriya hadn't really patched up anything since the Stain incident. Iida still felt deeply guilty about the whole ordeal.

"I might not be of much help, but I owe it to him," Iida said before following the other three.

Ochako was just so split. She slapped her cheeks, shook her head, and got ready. "I'm coming too. Someone has to look over you guys," Ochako joked. Realistically, her body was the least tired of everyone. Zero Coat was activated one last time today.

\- Back in the Forest -

Desperation was the name of the game. That damned dragon had been rebuilt to some degree. Its speed had been almost restored. It was like it was her only beast active. Izuku looked up at the orange sky. That could very well be the case. By now everyone else should have made it. Somehow in four hours he had not gotten any closer. The dragon ran him in circles. Whenever he thought he was making a lot of progress the dragon would get hyper aggressive. Then once he was pushed back enough it would relax to normal aggression levels. If not for the speed and strength of the beast the hyper aggression would be tolerable. If not for a badly broke right arm fending off this beast would be easy. If not for being a show off he wouldn't even be in this mess.

Izuku sighed. He was done feeling bad about everything. He wanted to just cut it all away. Unfortunately, it came at the cost of his humanity. He needed that to be a hero otherwise what would be different between him and a villain?

The air parted and he ducked. Another tree sliced down. He was beginning to wonder if this dragon had done a number on the forest yet.

His telekinesis was done for. His stockpile nearly gone. _How the hell do I find myself in so many of these situations?!_ Izuku yelled in his head. "Time to go out with a bang I guess," Izuku lamented and stood out in the open.

The dragon spotted him. They stared at each other for what felt like minutes. Pixie Bob must be able to read his facial expression. This was the only reason she could be so cautious. Several people were running towards them. _Who would be insane enough to come back?_ Izuku wondered.

Uraraka skidded to halt right next to him. Katsuki a few seconds later on his other side, "What are we waiting for? Let's kill this bastard."

"Can't help but get yourself hurt," Uraraka said after glancing at his arm. Iida was the next person to arrive. He put his hand on Izuku's right shoulder.

"What kind of friend would I be if I ate while you suffered?" Iida stated.

Kirishima and Ashido were the next two that showed. "Holy shit a dragon! Why did you get the manliest of manly challenges?! Now I'm more pumped up than ever," Kirishima shouted.

Izuku looked back, "Ashido?" The rest made sense.

"Let's just say you owe me one," She smiled. He nodded.

"Think you still have some fight left in ya? This will take all of us," Katsuki asked rolling his wrist and still massaging one arm.

"My left is fine. Right is a dud. Legs work. I have Explosion and Force Nullification left nothing else," Izuku gave his status report.

"I suggest a joint attack. Ashido weakened its body and limbs. Kirishima and I will do hit and run tactics. Uraraka you're the can opener. Once its weak enough bust its armor. Bakugo and Midoriya both of you will be the breaker. Together you should have enough to destroy it from within," Iida explained.

"Solid plan, four eyes. Maybe I'll have to come up with a better name for ya," Katsuki commented.

"Midoriya, how thick is it's armor?" Ashido asked.

"Its made of granite and quartz so nearly diamond levels of toughness," Izuku replied.

"Got it. Whenever Iida and Kiri give me a window stay away. This level of acid could kill people," Ashido got into a combat stance.

The dragon roared and shook the ground. "Kirishima and Iida you're with me. Let's go," Uraraka stated. The two nodded and broke off to the right. Katsuki and Izuku nodded to each other. They charged headlong at the behemoth.

Ashido wasn't far behind. Iida came from the right first and engaged with a solid kick. He might as well have been annoying it cause it just waved him off. Kirishima was in next and charged at the back legs. His hardened skin did hurt. The beast kicked at him. Uraraka was next. Her fist slammed into the leg and cracked the armor.

Ashido slid around to the right. A wave of acid hit the beast's leg. The acid didn't have much effect except it was making the stone more brittle. Pixie won't be able to notice that as the overall composition wasn't being changed.

A claw swiped at Katsuki and Izuku. Izuku applied Force Nullification to both of them. This would cap out the strain. The two of them blasted into the air. Pixie Bob decided now was a good time to allow the dragon to cheat. The claws of the dragon extended as it swiped again in the air. The two flyers narrowly dodged the sharp stones.

A recripro burst slammed into the other side of the beast. Kirishima and Uraraka both hit the arm and leg respectively. The tail was swiped at them. Uraraka jumped back and crouched down to give Ashido a boost into the air.

"Katsuki got for her," Izuku directed. Without any smart retort and quip he complied. He got her around the waist and gently brought her back to the ground. In the time they were recovering the dragon decided to focus on them.

It went to swipe at them. Izuku landed right in front of the beast, "Don't take your eyes off me!" Izuku shouted as green lightning arced across his palm. The green blast cracked the granite plating for the entire chest.

That was beyond the last of his stockpile. The dragon was looking furious. It bared its teeth at him and came down to bite. The world shifted as Uraraka collided with him. They tumbled a good 8 meters (26.25ft) away. She was on top of him. Basically straddling him. "Are you alright? That was dangerous you know," Uraraka said getting off him. She held out her hand. He took it and she helped him up.

"No risk, no reward," Izuku replied grinning. She'll have to punch him later for that.

The behemoth of a creature swung around his tail. The massive swipe pushed away all of them. Izuku saw it though. He saw the way to victory. The left side injury was the biggest and would be the easiest to exploit. He then saw the flash of the crimson eyes. It was going into hyper mode. They had to strike now or they won't have another opportunity.

"Uraraka, now," Izuku said to her.

"Now?" she rose an eyebrow. He replied with a nodded. "Now," she nodded. His hand lit up with soft green light. Healing was then applied to her. Uraraka bolted around to the others. She repeated the basic but pointed message.

Izuku held out his left palm. Green lightning arced across his body. "What do you say Pixie? Do you want to tango?" Izuku asked getting the dragon's attention. He clenched his fist and coursed more power through his body.

Somehow if he dug deeper his will could push out even more stockpile than before. Its just like All Might going past 100%. For once since it was connected he allowed the regeneration to tap into his will. His right arm popped and filled with life. He brought it up and coursed power through it. He didn't know what this would cost him later, but it was worth it now.

He kicked off the ground at the dragon. The beast swiped at him. In midair he let an explosion loose and countered with a kick. The counter blew apart the dragon's claw. It had been weakened after all. The green-haired teen landed and his muscles screamed. The other claw came down.

Uraraka and Iida combined kicks shattered the attack. Izuku dashed out of the way. Ashido threw a concentrated sheet of acid at the beast's side. The tail was swung back around. The purple girl glared at it and intercepted the attack. With her most potent acid ever was released from her body. The rock made contact with her and the acid soaked in. Kirishima was right beside her trying to stop it. "Pull!" She demanded. Kirishima hardened his arms and hands. He slammed his fingers into the tail. With his mightiest pull the rock broke and crumbled. Then all at once the tail shattered near the base.

Izuku held up his left palm. Katsuki his right palm. They were side by side, arms almost touching. In unison they shouted, "DIE!" Two massive explosion ripped into the dragon. The stone gave way and the entire torso of the beast was blown to smithereens. The head went flying. The arms and legs left fell to the ground.

"We did it!" Uraraka cheered tired as hell.

"Of course we did. We're heroes damn it! We can do anything together," Katsuki ruled padding Izuku on the back.

"I've kept you guys long enough. Let's get that dinner we deserve," Izuku stated padding Katsuki's back.

"Guys a little help," Ashido asked covering up her private bits. Izuku smirked and took off his shirt. He tossed it at her.

"Be sure to ask Momo once we get back," Izuku smiled turning away from her. Uraraka came over to try to get her some privacy.

Iida was limping now. Katsuki had one dead arm. Uraraka was likely to pass out if she didn't hurry up. Kirishima couldn't use his quirk any longer. Ashido was just embarrassed. Surprisingly, Izuku felt great. The muscle pain was just par for the course now.

"What a rag tag bunch we are," Izuku commented earning a laughing from them.

\- The Lodge -

The group of 6 students made it back. Aizawa and Mandalay were outside waiting for them. The pro teacher clapped his hands. "Fantastic. That granite dragon is meet for third years," Aizawa stated.

"I didn't miss any dinner did I?" Izuku chuckled standing tall in front of Aizawa.

"How should I put this? As All Might would say: 'What kind of school would this be if we didn't recognize you for your actual heroics'. Mandalay and I had a bet," Aizawa explained.

"A bet I lost," She pouted.

"Give me a day this week and I'll go easy on you. It'll be a fun heart building day," Aizawa smirked.

Izuku looked over at Ashido. "Ashido's birthday is Thursday so let's throw her a b-day bash," Izuku smiled before he continued onward.

"How do you know them so well?! Just lost another bet," Mandalay sighed.

Aizawa grinned, "Like I would tell you when they're around."

"Come on guys. Time for dinner!" Izuku beckoned his classmates.

They all smiled and rushed past Aizawa.

Dinner was as basic as anyone could imagine. But it was damn good after the day they had. The rest of the class was already unpacking their gear and luggage. The six of them sat at a table. Ashido decided to just wear his shirt despite Momo coming in and out of the main area multiple times.

"Thanks, Midoriya. I guess my b-day isn't going to be just another day," she smiled but it was a sad one.

"I'm glad. I'll make sure it'll be one to remember for years to come," Izuku smiled.

"I can't believe how delicious this rice is," Kirishima stated finishing his bowl.

"Anything is good if you don't eat long enough," Katsuki chimed in.

"You act like we traversed the desert or something," Ashido teased.

"We're growing heroes that expend a ton of energy using our quirks, so I think the statement stands," Katsuki argued.

"I think you're mistaking all that energy for hot air," Izuku retorted. Katsuki rage bleed through and he slammed his fist to the table. He gave Izuku a death glare. The rest of the table broke out laughing. This was the kind of fun they needed. The kind Izuku missed.

An hour later they were in the hot springs. The guys and girls were separated of course. Mineta was up to his usual antics.

"Someone else can stop him this time. I'm beat," Izuku huffed leaning back against a rock.

The little punk was muttering something about the girl being just over the border. Izuku shrugged he had already seen one of his classmates naked. Iida got up though, "Mineta, that is no way for a hero to act! They're our classmates respect that!"

The little bastard had some kind of epiphany cause his face got all calm. Then like a madmen he began to scale the wall. Iida walked over to the wall, "Mineta! Get down here before you get us in trouble!"

"Never! Not when their supple bodies are so close," the degenerate replied. Izuku had half a mind to fry him.

The kid from earlier was waiting at the top. Mineta was stunned being caught. The little boy punched him in the face knocking Mineta back. Mineta fell onto Iida and they crashed back into the water.

The girls cheered the boy on and thanked him. Izuku looked up to see him falling. Instincts kicked in. The green-haired teen exploded from his spot lightning coming from his body. He caught the little boy in a telekinetic hold. Then he brought him down in his arms. He made sure to leave just enough psychic energy between them so he won't be touching him.

Izuku brought the little boy indoors. Mandalay yelped and went to get a damp cloth. He put the boy on a couch.

"Are you guys his guardian or what?" Izuku asked hovering over him.

Mandalay came back with a damp cloth. "Kota's my cousin's kid. Poor thing passed out after seeing the girls all exposed," she stroked his hair.

"What happened to his parents? If you don't mind me asking," Izuku tried to be polite.

"Do you know the hero team, Water Hose?" Mandalay asked.

"Yeah, a few years ago they were tragically murderer trying to save a village," Izuku replied.

"Those were his parents," Mandalay explained. Izuku's eyes widened. "We've been taking care of him ever since."

"Does he hate heroes?" Izuku wondered thinking back to the cliff and the look Kota gave him.

Mandalay looked away a bit ashamed Izuku guessed, "He doesn't trust them. He hates that we need heroes to save people."

"Hopefully, one of us can inspire him," Izuku smiled.

"As much as we would like that. He hasn't even spoken to anyone yet," Mandalay admitted.

"Next time we have dinner or breakfast have him come down and I'll get him introduced," Izuku smiled at her.

She smiled back, "He'll hate that, but its for the best."

"I'll leave you two be. I don't think he'll like seeing me when he wakes," Izuku stated walking away. Mandalay nodded and waved.

He was heading back to the changing room. A few of the girls must have gotten out early as Ashido and Asui spotted him. If his confidence wasn't brimming near max being caught in only a towel would have been embarrassing as hell.

"Is he alright?" Ashido asked coming up to him.

"Yeah, I caught Kota before he could hit the ground. He's resting in the lounge right now," Izuku answered hoping she would just let him pass without teasing him.

"Thanks, Midoriya, we were all worried about him, kero," Asui commented relaxing.

He smiled back and kept on his way. "You know you're way more built than I thought you would be," Ashido commented. He looked back her and she was smirking.

His filter snapped a bit. He smirked, "You've got some pretty good curves on you too." She was not expecting him to be so forward. Ashido was at a loss for words. Izuku waved and went into the changing room.

Day one was over. Hell would begin tomorrow. Despite the damage he did to himself his body was still pristine. He laid in his mat. Sleep did not come easy to him. Within his quirk space he felt the pressure. His abilities all had the power to evolve separately from each other. His power stockpiles already underwent one evolution. If he kept pushing like this he was bound to evolve more of them. A thought crossed his mind. Maybe the pressure and strife he was put under was to promote evolution type growth rather than improvement growth. Most everyone else was put through improvement training. He shrugged and got up. Sneaking around was quite easy for Izuku. Telekinesis could open most anything silently. Then he could also walk on his telekinesis and never make a sound.

Izuku walked outside and admired the stars above. They were in a rather dense forest. "You supposed to be in bed," Aizawa put down his goggles and jumped off the roof.

"Restless. Quirk is pushing and moving things," Izuku replied glancing over to his teacher.

"Usually, we call that puberty," Aizawa retorted.

Izuku smirked. "That's the height. My quirk or rather the quirks within are evolving," Izuku explained creating a telekinetic chair and sitting down.

Aizawa stood next to him, "There's a theory out there that quirks can undergo a stress reaction. Some heroes have reported that in life and death situations their quirk will spontaneously change. This usually opens up a new dynamic within their quirk or it changes a key weakness. Sometimes the weakness is eliminated or its made into a strength. However, this 'quirk evolution' isn't reliable. That's why we train and boost our quirk's base ability."

"Hmm, so thanks to my regeneration ability I can trick my body into thinking its undergoing life and death situations. Ergo, I can evolve more easily than most," Izuku rubbed his chin thinking about how to best use that knowledge.

"Don't rely on it. Some quirks just can't evolve. I've been in plenty of life and death situations and not once has my quirk 'evolved'," Aizawa stated. The pro put a hand on Izuku's shoulder, "Now run along and get some rest." He looked up and nodded.

Before Izuku went in, "Could I ask a favor?" He turned to look at Aizawa.

"Tell me and I'll decide," Aizawa replied.

"Instead of pushing my quirk tomorrow. Can I instead focus on learning how to control the touching and taking part?" Izuku asked hope in his eyes.

"Hmm, I'll think about it," Aizawa replied. Izuku smiled and nodded. Somehow that eased his heart.

* * *

Drakonite227:

For anyone caught up with the manga, I'm taking the knowledge we learned there and applying it early. Sorry if you guys were looking forward to the Izuku Nut Punch. It will happen don't worry! Our hero still needs his nads punched in.

The granite dragon was impromptu but felt like well within Pixie Bob's abilities. The whole point of the dragon was to make the class work together to help Izuku. This is why Aizawa and Mandalay had a bet about the number of students that would volunteer. If less than 4 would have volunteered than the whole class was going to get forced to help. Since 5 stepped up Aizawa won the bet.

Also Mina melting all her clothes is completely possible and oddly hasn't happened in the manga yet (if not just played for laughs). Based on the description of her quirk she can output acid from her skin, but has learned how to control it and only use her feet/hands. In the case of a tail about as thick as her in height, it made sense that a little more acid output was necessary.

The explosion math. So 1.5% is a 10% increase multiplied 4 times: 1.5% = (1.1)^4. Or 1.46 = 46% increase in potency. So for 20% we get a bit more math: (1+.1*13.333)^4 = ~29.625. 13.33 is 20/1.5. This made the most sense since the power boost is before the multiplication. 10Kg of TNT is the current 100% explosion that he can output. I think this is pretty close to what Katsuki can actually do in canon. Now 10kg of TNT isn't very destructive in the scope of bombs, but consider that all the explosions are shaped charges where the blast is both concentrated and directed. Potency goes way up once that is factored in. With all those numbers we can get an impressive picture of what the max output Izuku has is. 100% would be (1+.1*66.666)^4 = 3454.7 times base or 34,547kg of TNT. 34.5 metric tons (0.2% the power of the Little Boy nuclear bomb). That much explosive power could level a city block and instantly kill most people within at least 100 ft of the blast zone. This is just rough math so the 34.5 ton explosion might be more dangerous still.


	28. Hell Week - Tuesday

The class of 1-A got up bright and early. Most of the class was already used to this kind of morning schedule. What they weren't used to was just how intense the training was. Aizawa said it best: "We've got two weeks to pound months of catch up into you!"

He wasn't kidding. Yaoyorozu was eating and just producing Russian dolls like crazy. Her speed and limit was the most important thing to increase. Satou was next to her doing something similar. His quirk limit was what they were aiming to push forward.

Kaminari was hooked up to a battery and had to just fire off his electricity non-stop. They were hoping to reduce the recoil of high volts and increase his range. He still couldn't direct it precisely but that wasn't as big of a problem at the moment.

Ashido was spewing acid at solid rock. They wanted to up her quantity and accuracy. Kirishima was nearby punching another rock wall. His time limit was the most important thing they wanted to improve.

Todoroki was in a barrel. It was kind funny when they asked him to get in it. He sort of just glared and complied. He was tasked with freezing the ground and the barrel. Then as soon as he could muster melting all that ice and making a field of fire around him. He had years of catch up to do with his left side.

Uraraka started the day off sparring with Tiger. There was two separate training methods she was going to do. One part was her physical prowess and control. The other half was improving her ability to handle her nausea. That comically involved tossing her into a glorified hamster wheel and sending her down slopes. It was kind of funny to watch.

Bakugo was plunging his hands into cold water before pulling them out and releasing the largest explosion he could. His weakness was cold water and cold environments. If he could get to the point where his hands being submerged was his only weakness they would be satisfied with his training.

Asui's quirk was being pushed to the limit one limb at a time. Most of her training was just strength training. Ojiro had a similar kind of training. His tail was strong so he was focused on increasing its flexibility and use.

Mineta had a cruel but straight forward training regime. He had to pull off his 'grapes' until he could no longer. Then he had to go Plus Ultra. Sero had basically the same regime. His was a bit more fun as they also wanted him to get practice rapidly swinging around.

Hagakure was running all over the place. For now they didn't know what they wanted to do with her, but for now strength training was a good start for her. Iida was running laps around her but that _was _his training. The main difference being he had to use recripro burst on cool down and still run in between.

Jirou was paired up with a rock. A rock she had to attack with her jacks. Her sound based powers already had good utility. Her jacks were her weak point so they wanted to eliminate that.

Tokoyami was locked in a semi dark area. His weakness was also his greatest strength. Control was what he needed to improve. A similar problem Koda had. His was more of an increase in the number of animals that would listen and the quantity of said animals. At first they wondered if he should focus on precision work, but after a brief explanation of his upper limit they decided it was too low to be very effective.

Aoyama had to improve much in the same way as Uraraka. The main difference being he had to use his quirk to trigger the reaction. So he did just that for hours on end. He only rested to get back his stamina before pushing himself right back to the limit.

That just left Izuku and Shoji. They were pitted against each other in the morning. They were the only two that were straight sparring. Izuku wasn't allowed to use quirks which left him at a disadvantage. Shoji on the other hand could only attack with his dupli-arms. Even then he could only use one at a time. They were pretty balanced against each other. Shoji proved that his singular control in combat was terrible. Izuku exploited on more than one occasion the range and awkwardness attacking with the dupli-arms caused.

The afternoon came and many of the instructors walked around giving out pointers or changing up the routines. From the looks of it UA had done their research and theorized more than a few ways for everyone to improve.

Aizawa came by Izuku and Shoji. "Shoji, that's enough for now. I want to try an experiment," Aizawa let them take a step from each other. Both of them were exhausted. Shoji was a beast to keep up with and Izuku wasn't going to let him win. The large teen rose an eyebrow and relaxed.

"Midoriya, in your profile you mention mechanically how your quirk works. It took awhile for us to wrap our head around it. But one part stood out: You quirk can identify and reject other quirks. This is most notable with mutation type quirks. Can you tell what Shoji's quirk is actually called?" Aizawa requested pointing to Shoji.

One mouth came from his dupli-arms, "Isn't my quirk Dupli-arms?"

"That's what we've decided to call it and what you've coined yourself. According to the Quirk Duplication trait, it might give it a different name," Aizawa pointed out.

"I'll give it a try. The identification is kind of quick," Izuku explained. The green-haired teen walked over to Shoji and placed a hand on him. His quirk upon touching another quirk would identify and decide in a heartbeat. This process was never really under significant scrutiny by Izuku. He had to let go and touch Shoji's arm multiple times to get a grasp of that part.

The process turned out to be a multi-step procedure. The first step was scan. This must be an adaptation to Nemu's multi-quirk body. The scan determined what the dominant quirk was. In most this yielded one answer. The next step was assess. His quirk did a full pass over the genetic part of the quirk. It also did a pass for structure and mechanisms involved. The next step was an odd one. It made a short memory pass on the 'victim'. Izuku didn't get any of these memories, but it captured the consistent personality of the person. In Shoji's case this trait was 'Stoic'.

Then his quirk got weirder. It made a pass on him. It was identifying compatibility and potential problems with existing quirks. It found a synergy with Power Stockpile, Explosion, and Creation. No problems noted. The last step his quirk took was physical compatibility. For Dupli-arms it failed due to no way to provide the minimum functionality of the quirk. Then the quirk was junked and deleted from the confirmation process.

"It's calling it 'Limb Replication'. Less eloquent than Dupli-arms," Izuku stated. A thought formed. Now that he understood the process maybe he could halt it or stop it outright. But where? The first step would be the best place. The last step was the most crucial. If he could skip the last step the quirk would just be junked and discarded. But stopping the first step meant the lowest risk.

His quirk on many occasions allowed him to put logic gates onto quirks. If he could toggle that part of his own quirk it would go a long way.

"Limb Replication? That's not bad. But that implies I can do more with it," Shoji rubbed his chin.

Aizawa was grinning, "Midoriya, do you think you can control it? Finding out information like that would be invaluable training heroes."

"I think I can. As you know I can apply logic gates, toggles, and pipelines in my 'quirk space'. I don't see a reason why I can't do that to my own quirk," Izuku was grinning too. He had two goals now. He needed to make a toggle for step one and a way to always 'fail' for the last step. His inspiration for the toggles within his quirk space was programming. The problem was setting up a toggle meant it had to be active. This meant the last step 'fail' toggle had to come first.

"Shoji, I apologize but I'm going to need you're help for a bit longer. I need to try and keep it active so I can see what I can do to it," Izuku apologized looking up at Shoji.

He spoke from his natural given mouth, "Don't be. I'm more than happy helping out my fellow classmates."

Izuku smiled at him, "Thanks." He closed his eyes and pumped Power Stockpile into his senses. Time felt like it slowed down a bit. Her touched Shoji again. The process was FAST. It took about 300 milliseconds to complete. It was just slower than a blink. Again he touched Shoji's arm. This pass allowed him to isolate the last step.

Four hours had passed and Izuku's head was hurting like hell. He did it. The two toggles were done. Activating either of them caused him some pain. It was a odd kind of pain. It wasn't the standard kind as his super regeneration would have kicked in. Calling it pain probably was inaccurate. The toggles caused a certain hazy. It was like his passive traits from people were shut off. This gave him a tinted view of the world. His memories felt tarnished.

"Are you okay?" Shoji asked.

"I'm not sure. It's like I'm not me right now," Izuku tried to explain.

"Can you still use your other quirks while the capturing process is 'off'," Shoji wondered.

"Good question," Izuku replied. He held out his hand and indeed explosion fired off. That felt mostly natural. There was no rage or anger he felt using that quirk. Somehow the capturing process was linked to the character traits he ripped from people.

"Alright, that's it for now!" Aizawa shouted getting most everyone's attention. "Fall in!"

The class gathered up. Many looked like hell. Others were just tired. "Midoriya, step forward," Aizawa commanded. Izuku gulped. Wait? Gulped. That wasn't normal.

He strode in front of the class. "Any luck?" Aizawa asked.

"I think I've got it down. It feels weird," Izuku admitted smiling nervously.

"Does anyone want to volunteer?" Aizawa requested looking to the student body.

Kirishima spoke up, "I will!" Aizawa grinned. That was good they'd see if he could do it immediately. The hardening teen stepped up to the plate. "You're turn Midoriya," Aizawa gestured to him.

Izuku felt nervous. A sinking feeling was in his stomach. He was worried. A feeling he hadn't felt in a long time. Kirishima held out his hand. Izuku had both toggles active. The green-haired teen took his friend's hand.

Nothing. No transfer. No new quirk. Izuku was so happy tears came down his cheek. "Midoriya? Are you okay, man?" Kirishima worried.

"Never been better. I can control it... I can control it!" Izuku was just ecstatic.

Aizawa smirked and gave him a moment to celebrate. "Calm down. Show us the precision now," Aizawa instructed.

Izuku nodded and changed his toggles around. First step on, last step to fail. The green-haired teen held out his hand this time. Kirishima showed no hesitation shaking it. A flood of information hit Izuku. "Trait: Perseverance. Quirk: Hardening. Ugh, that's a lot of info to dissect," Izuku stated but no quirk activation that he would have if he had gotten it.

"Sweet, that's awesome!" Kirishima smirked, "How about you guys? Anyone else want to get their quirks read?" The hardening teen just opened the flood gates. The rest of class herded around him. They were all curious as to what his quirk could reveal.

"Woah, woah, calm down. Not too many at once," Izuku warned.

Aizawa rose an eyebrow, "What's the limit?"

"Shoji and I found out if I stress out the second toggle too much it would break. The amount of stress is around 5 analyses in quick succession. The first toggle is foolproof as the whole thing is just off," Izuku rattled off in a few moments. His quick talking mumbling behavior was trying to surface.

The rest of the class just blink at that. It was almost too fast to keep up with.

"That will be saved for tomorrow! I'm hoping you're all hungry," Aizawa said getting everyone's undivided attention. "Good file in and let's get our dinner on," he was grinned now. Izuku knew that look. His teacher was up to no good.

This was more than true. When they got into the mess hall, all the vegetables, rice and meats were already out. It was all raw. Mandalay spoke up, "The mark of a true hero is being able to provide in moments of crisis. This sometimes includes cooking and providing meals." The whole class groaned from being tired. Momo and Izuku spared no time trying to coordinate everyone. Even the people that hadn't done much cooking got a role.

\- Momo's Viewpoint -

The young woman was standing next to Uraraka. They were both cutting up vegetables. Momo had got a bit concerned by Izuku. He just wasn't his usual self. He was timid and a bit nervous around his classmates. This was in stark contrast to his normally confident self.

"Uraraka, did you notice anything off about Izuku?" Momo asked her friend.

"Midoriya? Kind of reminds me what he was like before class got all tainted by the villains," Uraraka stated.

"I don't know. He's even less confident then then," Momo was worried. She had to rely on him after all being her VP.

"I think this is good for him. He was getting too confident and becoming an asshole," Uraraka bluntly retorted.

"I don't think was being an asshole," Momo defended.

"Because he thinks you're hot. He also respects you," Uraraka looked over and up at Momo.

Momo didn't think of herself as being particularly attractive. Uraraka, Ashido, and Asui all had better selling points than her. Unless he was into them being big. Her face reddened.

"Thinking about him? Must have been pretty naughty if you're blushing that hard," Uraraka teased keeping her voice down.

In her head, Momo thanked her discretion. "I'm not thinking like that," Momo whispered back.

"You don't have to be modest around me. I've thought about him a few times too," Uraraka admitted.

That was news to Momo. "What? Really?" Momo smirked looking back at her.

"If you get past his personality, he's got a good body, his heroics are inspiring, and he's.. kind of cute," Uraraka replied a light dusting of red on her cheek.

"He is a little isn't he?" Momo thought to herself.

"What calls to you the most?" Uraraka asked.

Momo couldn't help but smile thinking about him, "He's just so heroic. Izuku will stand up before the rest of us would. He'll jump into danger first and be the first to put his life on the line. He's what I aspire to be as a hero. I've got a ways to go, but he's almost there."

Uraraka was smiling too, "You've got a point I guess."

Midoriya came around. "Care to donate your cut veggies?" he was smiling at them.

Thanks to Uraraka, Momo had almost forgot what she was doing. "Oh, ah, yeah, one moment," Momo replied making an effort to finish quickly.

Midoriya was looking like he had something to say. He opened his mouth but thought against it. Momo noticed. Uraraka and her shuffled their yield into the pot he was holding. "Thank you," he said walking off. After they finished cutting up all the vegetables they were outside. There was 10 cooking areas. Somehow Momo and Midoriya ended up together cooking.

Midoriya went to get the wood and Momo made some matches. He came back and tossed the wood in. With a bit of lighter fluid and the match they were good to go. Before she could chat with him he was out helping other groups. He wasn't providing them fire, but showing them how to use flint to start the flame. Momo couldn't help but smile.

Midoriya was back eventually. "Need any help?" he asked standing next to her. It was at this moment that she realized he looked taller? Not quite her height but he was catching up.

"I think I can handle it," Momo replied.

"Do you think we could have a chat later tonight?" he wondered looking up at her eyes. That was a simple request she thought. Unless he meant after hours. A stray thought came into her mind. Holding the eye contact longer made her blush intensified.

"Well I don't know. It might be tough to sneak out," Momo tried to change the subject.

"I can get you if you're worried," Midoriya offered. It was an innocent smile. He had not implied anything, but her mind liked to file in the gaps.

"Um, sure, just give me a heads up," Momo smiled back to him. That was the last of the conversation between them.

Those of them that managed to fail their hero exam got extra night classes to catch up. Unlike the rest they were given 20 minutes to shower and report back the makeshift class area. No hot spring for them.

\- Men's Hot Spring -

Mineta was up to his antics again. Izuku stood up and walked next to him. He put one hand on the shorter boy's shoulder. He crouched down so that he was height level with Mineta.

"I'm going to give you two options," Izuku said loud and clear. If someone wasn't paying attention they were now.

The absolutely threatening aura of Izuku made the meek Mineta just look at him. Terror was on his face. "Option number one: you try to scale this wall and I bring you down concrete be damned," Izuku emphasized by pounding the ground with 300kg of force. The concrete dented from the impact. "Or option two: you walk away and never try to scale this wall. The choice is yours," Izuku patted his back and walked away.

Mineta was really torn. He was a pervert and there was no way he'd get trumped by that little kid again. However, Izuku threat was a real one. No matter how fast he was or how good his quirk it couldn't hold a candle to Izuku. Not only could the green-haired teen counter him, but he could incapacitate him in an instant. In the end, Mineta gave up.

"Good choice," Izuku commented sitting down in the water, "We'll make a man out of you yet."

Ojiro and Bakugo chuckled at the joke and at Mineta's expense.

Izuku just laid back in the water. He closed his eye. A finger poked him out of nowhere. Thankfully, he had toggled it completely off. The pain had fully subsided by this point.

The green-haired teen opened his nearest eye and looked at his assailant. It was Todoroki of all people. "Yes?" Izuku asked looking at him.

"Just checking if you kept it off," Todoroki replied satisfied that nothing happened.

"I'm keeping it off. I don't need to just acquire new quirks randomly. So from now on I'll be safe to touch or punch or whatever," Izuku explained closing his eyes again.

"Tell me about my quirk. I know sensei said to wait until tomorrow but I'm curious. Its been on my mind since you just spouted all that info about Kirishima's quirk," Torodoki requested.

Izuku sighed and swapped toggles. A few of the other guys were getting interested as well. In the span of one day he went from disliked to being the center of attention. He wasn't complaining necessarily, but there was a certain level of danger involved asking for his quirk info.

He reached over and touched Todoroki's shoulder. A wave of info was dropped onto his brain. If this kept up he would need his notebooks again. "Trait: Humility. Quirk... that's a long one... 50% Ice Manipulation, 50% Fire Manipulation, Innate Generator. Interesting," Izuku smirked knowing a few extra tidbits. His quirk was a counter to Endeavor's trait and a buff to hellflame with a new Ice component added. His quirk seemed to be able to separate out the two sides of his quirk too. That technically meant that he could if acquired turn it into two separate quirks. Izuku figured this was due to the recent dualism created by Todoroki's parents.

"That's a bit long winded compared to Half Hot, Half Cold, but more accurate I suppose," Todoroki was rubbing his chin in thought, "Innate generator. So it can tell the difference between people that merely manipulate an element or anything really versus someone that can generate that element or thing."

"That would be apparently correct. I didn't know that either," Izuku shrugged.

"Anything else interesting?" Torodoki wanted to know if Izuku's quirk was smart. It was very smart.

"Using your memories and an overview of some kind my quirk can assess how mechanically it functions. In your case you can't use both of them at the same time. Which is technically false. You should be able to, it just wouldn't work well. You should also be capable of cooling an area without any ice and the opposite without fire. Your limiter isn't actually your body temperature, but rather your bodies ability to handle the change in temperature so quickly. Otherwise my quirk identifies synergies and hindrances for existing quirks, but I suppose that could also apply to two or more heroes teaming up to fight one person," Izuku spouted off this huge analysis.

"Holy crap that's awesome! Do me next!" Mineta getting near Izuku. A few more folks came in close too. A psychic wall was made before too many could get too close.

"Sorry, just a precaution. You guys could easily overload my toggle and then we have problems," Izuku apologized rubbing the back of his neck.

"But if we could in single file we'll be fine," Ojiro reasoned smirking. Everyone caught on quick and a line was formed.

This went on for an hour before everyone's curiosity was satisfied. Izuku's throat was getting hoarse from talking. This wasn't true, but it felt like it. Aizawa was slightly amused that the class had asked him to go ahead with the quirk insights. The girls would miss out until the morning, but it was to be expected.

Another stealth mission for Izuku. Even without his confidence, his quirk usage wasn't dampened at all. It was the one thing he was most worried by, and thank the force that be it wasn't affected much. The only thing his confidence really affected a ton was interacting with people and taking risky battle strategies.

Aizawa was moving around a lot more than normal. He was patrolling the halls and the outside. It was like a damn stealth game at this point. Izuku had the advantage. He could sense much like how panning the camera in games worked.

Getting out another person would be a fun albeit very hard task. Izuku leaving was easy enough. He pinged the area around. By now he had memorized the shapes of his classmates. In Momo's case she had two unique differences. She was the taller girl in class. She also had another very obvious difference that made Izuku blush thinking about it.

He lightly rapped her door with his knuckles. Izuku was crouching in the dark. A single nudge with his telekinesis told her it was him. Momo opened the door in her pajamas. That was almost too much to handle. They were cute as hell. A mental slap later and he calmed down.

She whispered, "What's the plan?" Izuku noticed that she looked really worried. That made sense this was the first time she had done anything like this. Izuku had experience leaving and entering his own home late-ish. His mother was a real hawk about it too. If he could evade his mother he figured he stood a good chance to evade Aizawa.

"I put telekinetic pads on your feet. They're designed to act as a platform once you hit a certain point," Izuku whispered. He was taking this stealth op very seriously. His face must have conveyed that to her. The light dusting on her cheeks vanished.

They waited until Aizawa was on the outside part of his patrol. Mandalay and Pixie Bob were watching TV in the lobby of the lodge they were in. "Don't think," Izuku recommended. The two of them made there way to the front door. Izuku opened and closed the doors silently. It was too easy thus far.

Earth beasts were roaming around. They were all connected to Pixie so the difficulty just ramped up. Aizawa was around too. He was on the lodge at this moment. The two of them waited for a gap in the patrols and when Aizawa wasn't looking that way.

They dashed into a bush. If not for the intense situation and stakes involved both of them would have blushed from the closeness they had to maintain. Another break, another opportunity, Izuku had a place in mind for them. Before he had gotten shoved down into the forest, he had spotted a cliff with a cave. The cave was probably underwhelming, but the cliff should let him see over the whole area. He could also see the stars there. It wasn't supposed to be a romantic place to take someone. Izuku just wanted a moment to chat without pry eyes and ears. He had more than a few things he wanted to apologize for.

They had successfully got to the path up to the cliff. Good to as the telekinetic pads were running out of juice.

The two of them got to the cliff side area. Momo was just looking up at the stars. "Spotted this place before we got sent into the forest," Izuku admitted making a blanket for them to sit on. His creation had been slowed down every since the extra confidence had been cut.

"I really thought we were going to be caught!" Momo whisper yelled. Izuku wondered if she was getting a thrill from defying her teacher.

"Pixie almost got us once, but I don't think Aizawa was going to get either of us," Izuku smiled at her.

"How can you be so certain?" she wondered.

"Experience. Mom has a sixth sense for these kind of things so sneaking out was a challenge," Izuku chuckled. He laid down the blanket so that about a quarter of it went over the edge of the cliff. He sat down legs dangling off the cliff side.

Momo joined him maintaining some distance from him. It wasn't much, but she wasn't bold enough to be right next to him. She looked up, "I've been trying to wrack my brain this whole time why you would want to sneak out with me."

Izuku flashed a smile thinking. "Would my answer be silly if I said: I wanted to talk to you alone?" he looked over at her.

"You could have done that anywhere or earlier. Why now and here?" Momo asked looking him in the eyes.

"Because I wanted to talk to just you and you only. No prying eyes or onlookers," Izuku replied.

"What's so important that it has to be just me?" Momo always asked the right questions. He admired that about her.

Izuku looked up. He sighed. "You've stuck by me ever since we became class reps," she was about to interject when he put a finger to her lips. "I am not the same person that was voted in. That me. The confident strong me. Isn't true. That was my quirk. Its been tainting me for as long as I can remember. At first, it was just Kacchan's anger and my mother's caring nature. It took me _years_ to get used to that. In the span of what two months? I get 6 or 7 quirks? Each of those comes with a trait. A trait that I have to overcome just like training those quirks. After awhile I just lost sight of myself," Izuku gushed his heart out.

Momo giggled at Kacchan. It was a cute nickname she would have to remember if he pissed her off again. "So you're what? Stepping down? Giving me a heads up? What?" Momo wondered interested by the info dump but unsure of the reason.

"I was hoping for your advice. You always seem like you've got a good head on your shoulders and its one of the few reasons I admire you," Izuku admitted blushing.

He was right. Just the other day he flirted with her and no blush. This courage was the real deal not his quirk blocking the fear and worry. Momo looked out to the starry night and reached out a hand. "I've admired you since day one. So it's kind of weird you asking me for advice," She paused for a moment. He hung his head. Maybe it was shame or despair. "I think you should persevere. Take the positive qualities of your quirk and aspire to become like that. I don't know if you hate that you, but its not a weakness."

Izuku looked up at her. He put a hand on her shoulder, "Thank you. Did you know you're trait is Diligence?"

"Diligence," she smiled, "Makes sense. You know as scary as it was to sneak out. I had fun."

"That's good. Maybe we could do this again later...?" Izuku sheepishly asked.

Momo blushed and smiled, "That could be fun."

Momo scooted a little closer to Izuku. She pointed to the stars and named a few constellations. Izuku had fun coming up with his own. The two of them had an hour or two of laughing and fun.

Eventually, reluctantly, they had to go back to the lodge. They didn't really try to hide and Aizawa chewed them out for ten solid minutes. They got back to her room with minor supervision from Pixie Bob.

"Thank you again. I'll try to be worthy of you and myself," Izuku said caressing her arm before turning away. Momo reached out and grabbed his hand.

"I really should be thanking you. You got me out of my shell and I had a lot of fun doing it," she smiled at him. She squeezed his hand once before letting go. A part of her was hoping for more. Another part of her realized she was more of a friend over something more. A feeling that hurt a bit.


	29. Hell Week - Wednesday P1

The whole class was waiting outside the lodge for Aizawa. He wasn't late. He was talking to Sekijirou who was the 1-B homeroom teacher. Sekijirou was better known as Vlad King. Aizawa was coordinating with him so they wouldn't get in each other's way. According to Ashido class 1-B arrived early Tuesday. Unlike them they didn't get the same forest rampage treatment. That meant a few things to Izuku. One, Aizawa was pushing class 1-A as hard as he could. Two, they were potentially behind 1-B in pure development due to the villain attacks. Three, this was just the result of good scheduling.

No matter the case Izuku was interested in what today was going to be like. He needed to reacquaint himself with his quirks. Practicing with Tiger could easily do that. Man was like Gumby after all so he was good against most of Izuku's quirks.

Aizawa was walking back to them with his hands in his pockets. "We're going to give them space today. That means you better prepare yourselves for a bit of a hike," Aizawa smirked walking past them. Pixie Bob came along with them. There was a mutual consensus that 'a bit of a hike' didn't mean that at all. In fact they were all prepared for the opposite. When Pixie and Aizawa started to jog the rest of the class got the hint.

20 minutes later the whole class was at the base of the nearby mountain. There was an already cleared out area. That didn't bode well for class 1-A. "We're going to call out pairs! Pixie Bob is going to limit the area for each pair. This is a sparring day. I don't want to see any serious injuries. We're going to give all of you conditions to fight within. For some this will be about discovery. Others this will some off your weaknesses to a greater extent," Aizawa declared.

"Ashido and Midoriya!" Of course he was called up first. Pixie directed them to a plot of area that was no bigger than 2 meters by 2 meters (7ft by 7ft). This was a horribly small area to fight against someone as dangerous as Ashido. He was no joke either, but then the parameters came: "Midoriya, no quirks other than enhanced strength. Ashido, no limit for you." Izuku gulped getting into the ring with Ashido.

For the next 2 minutes they setup the rest of the matches. There was some comical pairs like Mineta and Todoroki. Ojiro and Momo was an amazing combo. Uraraka and Aoyama had to square off. Katsuki and Asui were pitted against one another.

Aizawa was up the slope from them, "All of you have to hold out for 1 hour. If anyone quits early by anything other than knock out, I'll be adding you to the night courses!" A few people shuddered at the thought.

Pixie blew a whistle and they were off. Izuku wasted no time throwing off his shirt. It wasn't going to protect him or help so it had to go. If not for decency and embarrassment his pants would go too.

"Mmm, you're much better up close," Ashido teased being at nearly point-blank range from him. They're fighting area didn't give him much room to maneuver. Izuku figured that was the point.

However, he couldn't help but blush being so close to her. Izuku shook his head, "Come on. Give me your all." He put up his fists. Green lightning coursed over his arms and legs. He could go for about 2 hours in this state. That was assuming he wouldn't put in over too much Stockpile. His Full Body use of Stockpile was more or less .027% constant drain per sec. That was without adjusting his output and matching the old Full Body form.

Ashido pivoted in a quick motion. Her kick snapped up and almost caught him off guard. Her kick landed against his guard. Izuku decided it was beneficial to either of them if he went on the defensive. If he had to guess this sparring was about her fighting an overwhelming opponent. She would be forced to really use her acid. Up to this point she hadn't used her quirk on people. Melting concrete or steel was no big deal, but she wasn't about to permanently disfigure someone for just sparring with her. Except in Midoriya's case he had the power to regenerate just about anything she could do to him. His fat storage was around 60kg. This more or less allowed him to regenerate 60kg worth of mass. That wasn't exactly how it worked, but it was a good enough approximation.

Ashido kept on the assault. She had yet to use her quirk. Izuku decided to force the matter. During one of her punches he caught her wrist. He step by on the same side. While he was moving around he kicked out her foot on the same side and forced her down to one knee. By this point her held at a sharp angle behind her. A hand was placed on her shoulder keeping her grounded.

Ashido struggled a few times. His strength was just too much to force through. At this point she was just being stubborn. "Use your acid to free yourself," Izuku demanded. Then she produced weak acid. Sure it burned and hit, but it wasn't anything that impressive. He sighed.

Izuku let go of her wrist. His right arm went over and around neck. His left arm came through her left arm pit and locked in his right arm. He stood up straight straining her ability to stand. "Do you think if I was a villain I would be treating you so well right now?" Izuku whispered into her ear. The neck lock wasn't strangulating her per say but it was uncomfortable as hell.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Ashido retorted struggling. Pixie seemed to get the idea as where this was going and erected walls around them that were about 2m(7 ft) in height. Made it look like they were in a cube.

Izuku adjusted his hold so that just his left hand was holding her by the throat. This time he did pick her off the ground by her neck. "Villains like to play with their prey," Izuku felt a grin surface. That response was out of the norm for him. Yet it felt so natural. A tinge of a headache came on. They want out. His other personalities, his other self wanted to take over. It felt wrong to deny himself a part of what was core to his personality, but his quirk and that part of him weren't right. That level of confidence, anger, and ferocity tended to manifest in far too honest ways.

Midoriya felt one hand run down Ashido's side. It was a clear message. It was his idea, but not his will to execute it. The message was even clearer as he traced her curves. She was about to get pissed at him for being a pervert, but this was a real situation. It was potential outcome fighting a strong enough villain.

Ashido got serious. Near max strength acid made contact with his wrist. His wrist literally melted and if not for the inner ligament would have fallen off. She had freed herself and put a little distance between them.

The green-haired teen's effect of her body could not be ignored. Being the prey in that situation got her a bit hot. If she had been a weaker woman he would have just choked her out. Ashido knew he wouldn't have actually done anything, but the thrill was there.

Bones mended. Ligaments and muscles formed. Finally, skin sealed the wound. In the span of 3 seconds his injury was gone. "Good. Progress. Now use your acid and actually fend against me," Izuku instructed. She nodded and put a thin layer of acid on her fists.

Mina had to admit that was a bold move. At first she felt bad and concerned that she nearly melted his hand off. After seeing the super regeneration in action her opinion changed. Izuku wasn't going to get hit intentionally from this point on. He had given her a freebie. Except her throat was bruised. He had also riled up the part of her that was a woman. Midoriya never would have done that in a regular setting.

Her plan of attack was to augment her kicks and punches with near max strength acid. It had to be just before the impact as keeping that kind of acid on her skin for too long hurt. It was a double edged blade she was determined to master. If anything Midoriya gave her a perfect out to practice acid potencies. It was the thing she was most worried about. Now she had a way to practice without killing anyone.

She kicked off her shoes to better deliver kicks. "We should do this again some time. I'd like to find out exactly how strong my acids need to be for people," Mina commented. Swapping acids on the fly was a conscious effort. She slicked the ground so she could stake. It would have acted as an oil slick too if not for Midoriya's ridiculous strength. Instead of slipping he would step down hard and crack earth.

"I'd be more than happy to oblige you, but you'll owe me," he grinned.

_Trading Favors? _Mina grinned. Those were her kind of deals. "Fine by me!" Mina confirmed jumping off a wall. She flipped in midair and brought her foot down. Acid splattered all over this guard when he blocked. Mina backed off and slid across the small space. She came to understand that he wasn't going on the offensive. This was a godsend for her. She may be confident in her abilities but he was a force of nature in comparison. Save for her acid, not one attack had connected with anything other than his guard. Which felt like punching or kicking steel.

\- 1 Hour Later -

The wall around Ashido and Midoriya was removed. Ashido was panting and her shirt was soaking wet with sweat. Ochako felt a little bad for her. Midoriya wasn't looking worse for wear or tired at all. The brunette being concerned got up to her friend. Aizawa had given them a 5 minute break. Kirishima and Bakugo came over to Midoriya to recount their sparring.

Aoyama was laying on the ground from their bout. She offered him a hand before she left. He took it, "Thank you, mademoiselle." She smiled from that. Despite his sparkling pride Aoyama was a nice guy.

Ochako walked over to Ashido. The pink teen was sitting on the ground. Pixie had given out water bottles to those that asked. Ashido had just chugged her second. "Are you okay, Mina?" Ochako asked standing above her.

"Yeah, doing great actually. Using a lot of acid just dehydrates me quick as hell," Ashido nonchalantly replied waving her hand.

"Using a lot of acid?" Ochako was a bit concerned. Less for her and more for him. _What exactly did they do?_ Ochako wondered looking over at Midoriya.

"Yup," she stood up grinning, "His body took a lot of acid to burn through. Plus halfway through he started to be... active."

"Active? Like fighting?" Ochako asked confused.

"More like grappling and throwing. I guess my slick acid has some impact absorption once it gets thick enough," Ashido explained pointing to the ground Midoriya had been near. There was 5 inches of acid sitting in a reservoir.

"How come you don't have any in your hair or clothes for that matter?" Ochako wondered.

"Its just slick. No acidity. The composition is more like a gel than a normal liquid," Ashido explained making a ball from her hand. Ochako picked it up. Damned thing almost slipped right out of her hands. It didn't want to stick to anything and it was going to make you work for holding it.

Ashido started laughing seeing Ochako juggling it before it flew out of her hands. The ball soared through the air. Just before it hit Jirou a psychic box was put around it. She still jumped when the little ball splatted against the psychic wall.

Jirou padded her face and body making sure none of it got on her. "Sorry!" Ochako called out from across the area.

"No problem. I've got a guardian angel," Jirou nudged Midoriya. She was smirking and he was a good sport about the whole mess.

Round 1 was up. Ochako figured they would go 8 rounds before the day was over. For most that would be one hell of a marathon fight.

"Todoroki and Midoriya!" was the first set called out again. Those two got their own makeshift arena to fight in. The most notable feature was 2m (7ft) thick walls surround the stage. "Midoriya, no explosion, physical enhancement, or telekinesis. Todoroki, no limit," Aizawa declared.

They got into the arena. Izuku rolled his shoulders. He'd have to engage Todoroki in melee combat. Aizawa blew the whistle this time. Todoroki wasted no time sending a wave of ice at Izuku. It would have been effective to if not for the one _particular_ quirk he was allowed. Green flame erupted from his chest turning his shirt to ash. The wave of ice turned to steam before it ever approached him. Izuku hair was a flickering green fire. His entire upper body was covered in green fire. It was a thin layer but one could see the haze of heat.

"This match isn't about raw power, Todoroki," Izuku pointed out making toward the dual haired teen. Todoroki was speechless at first seeing the Flame Armor of Izuku. The area got so hot Todoroki begun sweating. This was not the normal flame he was used to his father producing.

"You're right. This is about keeping my cool in the face of my father's quirk," Todoroki admitted feeling his memories getting pulled. Izuku for a moment looked like the splitting image of Todoroki's father from his youth. A whole host of emotion came out. Anger, fear, sadness, and pain were just a few of them.

"Come on, Todoroki, take all that bottled anger and punch me in the face," Izuku beckoned him. Todoroki coated his whole body in ice and charged at Izuku. Without his physical enhancements this would be an even match. Except of course, that Todoroki had to stay close to Izuku. With that much ice all around him he'd need to stay close to maintain equilibrium.

Izuku for once was the aggressor. In his many years training with Katsuki he had learned a few things. Katsuki had the instinct to naturally pursue his opponent's weaknesses and strengths. Just once Izuku forced his friend to boil it down to something understandable. Something that Izuku could apply if need be.

Katsuki's checklist was very simple: first step was check speed and reaction times. This was always the greatest determiner for fights of near equal skill. Second step was to check strength and durability. Some people are just naturally inclined to either one. In the case of strength, avoid getting hit. In the case of durability, wear them down before delivering any decisive blows. Third step adapt to everything. Katsuki explained this as the willingness to see a new option or plan at a moments notice. For Katsuki his body usually moved before a plan was decided upon. In terms of combat potential that gave Katsuki an unreal advantage. Even after a decade Izuku was still getting that last step down.

The green-haired teen had no shortage of plans, options, and attacks. The problem was applying the right one to the right problem. He had found that his ultra confidence with Endeavor's quirk allowed him to act like Katsuki in combat. The downside was well the overconfidence.

Todoroki and Izuku were trading block to hit one after another. It turned out that Todoroki's physique wasn't for show. Neither of them were faster or stronger. Izuku was surprised they were an even match in pure melee combat. Keeping this battle going on for another hour would be another story. Punches and kicks turned to grapples and reversals. Eventually, they were just all out brawling. Nothing landed and both their quirks were getting stressed out.

\- 1 Hour Later -

Shoto was panting. He kept his stance up like his father had taught him. If not for the required one hour they would have thrown in the towel some 30 minutes ago. Still they fought until the bloody end. His arms and legs were bruised from blocking. Midoriya didn't look like it but the man could fight. Thanks to that super regeneration of his damage there was no issue. In a pure attrition battle like this, Shoto knew he was out classed. Still no matter how much his muscles burned or protested he pushed on. Hopefully, his next opponent would go easy on him.

The whistle went out and in an instant both of they're quirks stopped. Midoriya dropped to his knees panting. Shoto rose an eyebrow. While his determination was unbroken Midoriya would not fall. It was also a sign that Midoriya didn't take the fight personally.

"At first I thought you were all show," Midoriya sat on his ankles and gestured to Shoto's torso.

"My father made sure to train me thoroughly," Shoto replied. As much as Shoto hated to admit it, his father pushed him towards being the best he could be. Shoto had a question, "Those flames were green. Are those a quirk thing? Or a synergy thing?"

"Synergy. Power Stockpile. The only quirk, er quirks, I didn't tell them about. That green flame is equivalent to the blue flame Endeavor can do. It's not as hot as his, but it'll do in a jiffy," Midoriya answered standing back up. Midoriya strode over to Shoto. He offered him a handshake. The pads of his fingers were growing a soft green. "Is that Healing? Can it restore stamina?" Shoto questioned hesitate to take the hand.

"I can't restore stamina, but I can make the bruises and your muscle ache less," Midoriya smiled at him.

His smile was damn near infectious. Shoto smirked and shook Midoriya's hand. Green energy enveloped him for a moment. All the bruises subsided. His muscle soreness was lessened.

"Thank you. I'm a bit more tired, but I'll manage," Todoroki smiled and let go.

"The fatigue should pass. You're going to be way more hungry than most of us by dinner though," Midoriya laughed sheepishly.

"Midoriya and Kirishima!" Again Midoriya was first. Either they had an out for him or he was the most important to put on a team. It struck Shoto for a moment that perhaps Midoriya was more a tool to be used by the teachers rather than teach him anything. He knew Midoriya had trust problems with a few of the other classmates. The class had trust issues with him too. It was somewhat collectively dashed when Midoriya proved that he no longer needed to keep his quirk active.

Izuku groaned in his head. This was going to hurt. Kirishima was literally like punching a brick wall. Kirishima couldn't be more hyped. Izuku couldn't help but smile at his infectious energy. "Midoriya, Force Nullification only. Kirishima no limits," Aizawa instructed leaving them in their arena.

_Worse possible outcome. I'll got about a 110kg limit on Force Nullification without Stockpile. Kirishima probably weighs less than that, but it won't be able to hold him for long. I'll just have to inert his attacks and release asap,_ Izuku pondered. If he hadn't kept his hand on his chin, he would have undoubtedly returned to old mumbling habits.

Pixie Bob sounded a whistle. Kirishima wasted no time. The red-haired teen ran headlong at Izuku. Kirishima threw a right hook. The defensive teen left himself wide open. Izuku grabbed his wrist and step into his foot. With a slight pivot Izuku knocked him off balance. A hand made contact with Kirishima's chest. The red-haired teen hit the ground with a resounding thud. The grounded teen had hardened before impact.

Kirishima was grinning up at him. _Ah shit,_ Izuku said in his head. A hard kick hammered Izuku's guard. That hurt. It was like getting hit by a steel bar. Kirishima jumped up standing. Again he was on the offensive. Izuku dodged the next punch. A hard palm connected with Kirishima. Even with the hardening it still hurt both of them.

"Just like Bakugo. I can't let you get a clean hit in," Kirishima was grinning madly.

"I can't let you get in one either. Those rocks you call fists hurt," Izuku was grinning back.

It was an all out brawl.

\- 1 Hour Later -

Both of them were panting and sweating up something fierce. Neither of them would give the other any ground. The whistle was blown and both of them fell over. "Nice job," Izuku held up a thumbs up.

"Right back at you," Kirishima held up his thumb. The only way this moment could have gotten more bro-tastic would have if they fist pumped.

Aizawa gave the class a 20 minute break. There were three more matches left. That was according to Aizawa. However those three matches would be more interesting. His words not mine.

"Listen up! These next bouts are about team building. For those of you facing an overwhelming force your mission will be to incapacitate them. If you can do this within the hour I'll excuse the rest of the day to that team. Make no mistakes though! Villains sometimes have powerful and dangerous quirks that require exemplary teamwork to take down,"Aizawa explained earning worried looks from his class.

Momo raised her hand. Aizawa pointed to her. "I thought this was about improving our quirks?" Momo asked.

"Good point. The villains in this exercise with not be on the offensive. They're only task will be suppressing the 'heroes'," Aizawa replied before he grinned.

"Bakugo, Todoroki, Yaoyorozu, Uraraka, and Iida. You five with be designated as the juggernauts," Aizawa stated as Pixie Bob made the 5 arenas. Yaoyorozu rose her hand again.

He gave her the floor. "Shouldn't I be swapped with Midoriya?" Momo wondered feeling a bit nervous questioning the teacher.

"I wonder if that's true. Sounds like you don't believe in yourself," Aizawa pointed out.

"I-No, I do," Momo replied.

"Good. In order to beat the juggernaut all you have to do is ring or KO them," Aizawa grinned. A few people were worried that this could be one hell of an afternoon.

* * *

**Drakonite227:**

Last update and the two places I'm posting will be caught up. Fanfiction will be moving to a one a week posting schedule. Monday will be the day I post.


	30. Hell Week - Wednesday P2

"Jirou. Mineta. Midoriya," Aizawa addressed the three of them before turning to the rest of the class, "This goes without saying that everyone can use their quirks to their full potential. Except Midoriya he gets to choose one."

"Damn, I was really hoping this would be a cake walk," Jirou whispered. The three of got together. They were pitted up against Iida.

"How do you to do this Midoriya? We're not really equipped to handle him," Jirou gestured to herself and Mineta.

"Hmm. I could engage him but I think that's a waste. Without all my quirks I'm at a disadvantage too," Izuku stated seeing Aizawa walk up to him.

"What will it be Midoriya?" the teacher asked crossing his arms.

"Telekinesis," Izuku replied in an instant.

Aizawa rose an eyebrow but nodded. The man had a wicked grin on him. "Begin then. I'll be watching you like a hawk though," Aizawa warned.

As Aizawa left Izuku beckoned his teammates to him. "Mineta I know you've been popping those off all day, but I need about 20 of them. Jirou I'm going to coat your arms in telekinetic shielding. It sounds risky but I want both of you to pursue him and go on the offensive. I'll offer support from a far. Don't let him get to me," Izuku plotted, "Any objections?"

"Actually, I like it. I get to be on the front lines for once," Jirou put her fist into her palm.

"Good. Mineta?" Izuku looked down at the midget.

"As long as we beat him in less than an hour I'll be happy for any plan," Mineta stated.

"Its settled then. Now go!" Izuku pointed at Iida. The blue-haired teen had been patiently waiting for them to finish. This was a major loss for him doing that. Allowing Izuku to plan would be anyone's downfall.

Mineta started the match off by throwing 20 balls into the air. With his telekinesis Midoriya caught them. Jirou was sprinting at Iida. Her jacks and arms were at the ready. Since the orbs were virtually weightless, he pumped more TK into her 'armor'. Without any other quirks the TK was limited to around 34kg (75lbs). Not enough to stop a full hit, but it would absorb a lot of impact force.

Iida was a gentle man. He charged at her. Once he got close enough he pivoted and kicked. It was a normal kick. Jirou brought up her arm and blocked the kick. The TK armor absorbed most of the impact. She grinned and pushed the leg away. Stepping forward she wound up a punch. In the same moment Izuku shifted the TK weight. Her punch connected with most of her body weight and an additional 34kg. It was more than enough force to move Iida back a few feet. The tall teen held his gut from the punch and narrowed his eyes.

His folly was not taking her seriously. Iida's engines kicked on. Izuku wasn't going to let him gain any momentum. A purple sphere flew straight at his vision. Iida narrowly dodged the sphere. He looked around and realized he was surrounded by orbs. It was Jirou's turn to be the aggressor for once. And boy did she like feeling empowered.

Mineta was closing on too. A bit of blood coursed from his skull. He had one grape in either hand. The little guy lunged at Iida seeing an opportunity. Mineta would make a good rogue.

Iida had his hands full dodging Mineta and blocking Jirou. With Midoriya's help they were more than capable of taking on Iida. Izuku looked around to see the other matches. He didn't need to see to use his TK effectively.

Katsuki rattled his stage not giving Aoyama, Tokoyami, and Sato any ground. The dark teen was useless against Katsuki. Aoyama's accuracy and speed of fire wasn't high enough to connect with the explosive teen. Sato had the most success but powerful explosions kept him at bay.

Todoroki might as well have not been fighting anyone. Hagakure, Shoji, and Kirishima were basically no match for him. Kirishima was moving bit by bit before getting frozen again. Todoroki wasn't really trying too hard either.

Momo was showing off her mastery of weapons and her quirk. Sero, Ojiro, and Asui were having one hell of a time doing anything. She had a sword in one hand and a plated gauntlet for her other arm. The sword kept Sero at bay. The gauntlet was to absorb Ojiro's hard strikes and make some of her own. For the most part she was just exploiting how poorly they were working together.

Uraraka's arena was almost comical. Kaminari, Ashido, and Koda were not doing well at all. Ashido was floating in the air. Koda was sort of holding his own against her. His brute strength and distance strategy was working fine. Kaminari walked around the stage with a derpy look on his face. Izuku couldn't help but chuckle at the bizarre situation.

It was time to end his match. Izuku joined his teammates. Iida wasn't expecting Izuku sliding in and delivering a high kick. He blocked the hit just in time but staggered back. A few grapes were waiting for him as he stepped back. One of this legs were stuck.

"Mineta, go for one of his arms and restrain him," Izuku instructed picking Mineta up by his shirt and tossing him at Iida. Mineta was panicking at first. That was until Iida instinctively brought up his guard. The first grape hit Iida's wrist. Mineta's momentum pulled him around to Iida's back side. Another orb was placed on his lower back. Iida pulled his arm forward. With some telekinetic aide that forward pull for Mineta went sideways. The short teen landed on Iida's back. Mineta put on arm around Iida's throat in an attempt to stabilize himself.

"Let's go, Jirou," Izuku looked over at her. She nodded and they blitzed at him. Izuku kept with her placing. His TK armor on her shifted preparing for her attack. They were side by side. Once they got into range she pivoted with her right and him his left. Her empowered side kick and his landed at the same time. At around that same moment the grapes connecting him to the ground were split from the ground.

Iida went flying. Izuku plucked Mineta off Iida back adding some rotational momentum. The tall teen rolled right out of the ring. Jirou and Mineta cheered. Jirou held up a high five for Izuku. He smiled and gave her a high five. "That was awesome. I can't believe we did it!" Jirou seemed happy and relieved.

"Teamwork goes a long way," Izuku smirked.

"Thank god I can rest," Mineta said dropping onto the arena.

"Jirou and Mineta. Good job we've earned it. Midoriya choose another group to help and a new quirk," Aizawa chimed in cutting the celebration short, "Also give Iida a booster. That looked like it hurt."

His teacher was right. Izuku slide off the side of the arena and crouched down beside Iida.

"Sorry, for beating you up. No hard feelings right?" Izuku offered a glowing hand to Iida.

"Its good to have you back. I missed chatting to you about heroes," Iida smiled at him as the healing took effect.

"I know. Did you ever come up with a hero name?" Izuku asked as the other teen stood up.

"Yeah, I know what I want now," Iida looked down at him.

"Good. I was worried that whole Stain thing rattled you to your core," Izuku admitted making sure the healing effect did as much as he intended.

"It did, but I'm working through it," Iida admitted back to him.

"I'll be by your side this time. Share some of that burden and we both can be stronger," Izuku put a hand on Iida's shoulder before the teen left.

"Aizawa-sensei! Explosion," Izuku shouted stepping onto Momo's arena. This prompted Yaoyorozu to put some distance between the other three and Izuku. Before she was enjoying her bout and keeping the three at bay was easy. Adding Izuku complicated things. His base strength was impressive and explosion was no joke either. She had gotten a lot of time to practice against it, but never once had she been able to beat him.

Izuku casually walked up to Asui, Ojiro, and Sero. The three of them were tired. "You guys okay?" Izuku asked them.

"Knuckles hurt, but otherwise fine," Ojiro commented smirking.

"Tape dispensers are aching and running lowish," Sero stated rubbing his elbows.

"I've got a bunch of bruises but I'm fine, ribbit," Asui said in her neutral voice.

"Hmm. Asui and Ojiro you're with me. Sero wait for an open shot. If we can subdue her enough I want you to wrap her up and throw her out. If she struggles too much Asui can help and the two of you will toss her out," Izuku reasoned.

"How do you want attack? I'm not much of a brawler," Asui worried.

"Is it really a good idea for me to hang back?" Sero wondered.

"Asui, Ojiro and I should be able to anchor you so you can use your agility like you usual do. Between Ojiro and I, only one of us will be attacking her. The other can setup up your combo attack from a blind angle. After you attack Asui I want you to disengage and combo with the other person," Izuku explained before looking to Sero, "You're tape is super strong and unless she wants to leave herself exposed against me she's going to suit up. That means no blades from the skin. If you get her its over for her."

The three of them looked to each and nodded. They liked his plan. Izuku broke from the group first and walked towards Momo. "So why me next? Bakugo's or Todoroki's group looks like they need you more," Momo questioned as rubber armor came over her skin. It was rubber armor with gel layering. It was designed to combat Explosion. Momo took off her shirt and shorts knowing they would not survive the fight against Izuku. He chuckled this reminded him of the first few times they sparred. He had ruined a few shirts and bras thanks to explosion.

"I choose you, because you were challenging the most important part of the exercise. Teamwork," Izuku stated. A helmet with a visor came over Momo's head. The visor was impact and crack resistant clear plastic. The metal gauntlet on her right arm was adjusted to accommodate the rubber suit under layer. The sword in left was brandished at Izuku.

"I know you have pride in your skill, but you've never beaten me," Izuku taunted.

She brought up the visor, "You said in yourself: I'm not the old me. I think I've got a good chance." She ran at him. Izuku's hands crackled feeling a bit nervous. Then his mind was clear and his focus absolute. He held out one palm. He didn't budge. He had to have faith in Ojiro and Asui. There were a few holes on her back so she could still produce items. A steel staff shot out of her back. With her free hand she reached back and swung the staff at Izuku.

Momo saw Asui flying over Izuku. She had to block the flying frog. Ojiro past by Izuku. Momo stabbed the sword into the ground. Asui kicked off the staff. Momo reached out and grabbed her foot. Ojiro came in and landed a hard palm strike to her gut.

Asui was knocked off balance and her retreat wasn't solid. Izuku watched her trajectory and slide to intercept her. She didn't have enough time or air to flip around and land properly.

"Got ya," Izuku bringing her back up to her feet.

"Thanks, let's take her down," Asui gave a minor facial expression. He sprinted ahead of her. Ojiro was defending himself just fine. Steel versus flesh hurt a bit, but he was trained to fight against weapons. Asui and Izuku took the long way around. They had to get into her blind spot after all.

Once they were out of view he beckoned Asui to him. He pointed to his back. Izuku still didn't have a shirt. His quirks functioned better without his shirt anyway. Her hands landed on his shoulders and her feet planted into his back. It was mildly uncomfortable, but she didn't weigh too much. "Brace yourself," Izuku whispered to her. She nodded and squeezed down harder with her fingers. A near max blast sent them flying. If not for her focus she would have screamed from the sudden acceleration.

Momo pushed past Ojiro trying to keep line of sight with Izuku. Another several explosions and she lost him again. Ojiro this time didn't let her move to gain sight. They were at a stand still. She turned her head almost out of instinct and saw Asui flying at her. Izuku was the next to dive bomb her.

The raven-haired teen jumped out of the way. Asui missed and left herself wide open. Ojiro pulled her out of the way of a strike.

Izuku rolled across the ground getting to near point-blank range of her. Two explosions ripped lose. Momo just took the hits. She swung her staff through the smoke. He hand caught the staff through the smoke. Another point-blank explosion was fired off against her torso. This one stung. This hit made her change tempo. He wasn't that different. The explosion had pushed her back.

With a quick twist her staff broke into two parts. Izuku kept going at her. Dual wielding her staff she swung at him. He caught the second and blocked the first. A strand of tape shot at her. Momo made the mistake swinging her first staff at it. The tape wrapped around it. Izuku put a palm just under her bosom. The sweat kept stacking for the few moments. Then the explosion detonated.

Her staff stabbed into the solid earth of the arena. New rubber was replacing the old melting rubber. She was nearly out of the arena. The smoke was everywhere too. Asui came flying through the the smoke and drop kicked her. Momo was knocked off balance. Then all of them came at once.

A strand of tape caught her by the arm. Izuku aimed at the ground and let loose another explosion. Ojiro past Izuku and slammed a palm into Momo. She flew out of the arena and rolled across the ground.

"Holy crap that was tough," Sero said relaxing.

"Great job everyone," Izuku rolled his shoulders. He jumped out of the arena and placed a healing hand on her.

"Thanks. Can't believe a bit of teamwork goes that far," Momo stood up.

"Hellflame, Aizawa-sensei," Izuku walked into Todoroki's arena. His fire emanated from him. The arena heated up and the ice melted.

"Having fun?" Izuku asks the other three. Hagakure ran up to him.

"I'm sooo cold!" she shouted her clothes shivering. Shoji stood next to him, one hand reached out.

"It was getting kind of hopeless," Shoji commented.

"I would have gotten him eventually, but it's good to have you," Kirishima grinned shaking the water from his skin.

"I thought I could even things out. How about we get him out of here?" Izuku smirked looking at them.

"Thought you would never ask," Kirishima slammed his fist into his palm.

"I've wanted to try this," Izuku grinned putting a hand on Kirishima's shoulder. The flames snaked across his arm onto Kirishima. At first the teen was surprised. But no burning just warmth. The flames formed a vest on him.

"That's awesome!" Hagakure cheered, "Me next." Izuku felt a hand on his back. Again the flame crept up her arm and encased her body. The flames traced her body and for once her outline was visible to all. The flames turned into a shirt and waist cape. She played with the flames. They rolled over her fingers harmlessly.

Shoji was next. The flames encompassed his arms and torso. "Impressive. This must take a lot of concentration to maintain," Shoji commented.

"Yeah. Most of it. But the benefits outweigh the cost," Izuku shrugged. Todoroki was just impressed. The flame armor was a great idea, but applying it to other people? That was what pushed it over. Todoroki _gulped_ seeing their looks. His ice was his best weapon and it just got nullified. Fire erupted from his left side. He held out his hand.

"Kirishima get behind Hagakure! Shoji stay behind me!" Izuku shouted as he brought up a thick flame wall.

"What am I supposed to do?!" Hagakure shouted.

"Pull out the cloak and hold it up," Izuku instructed. The back of her fire shirt connected to her waist cape. She grabbed the shoulder connection and brought it in front of her in a wide arc. Fire also coated her hand as it was exposed.

A torrent flame washed over them. The fire cape held up as Izuku's flame was too dense to push through. His fire wall was unaffected. He saw what he had to do.

Izuku walked out into the flames. They weren't hot enough to burn him. He stood directly in front of the flames. The green-haired teen held out two hands. Fire exploded from his hands. The two channels of flame clashed.

Todoroki's volume was more than what Izuku could muster at the moment. Much of it was blocked. Todoroki glared and put more oomph into it. Izuku grimaced he didn't want to use this much energy on Todoroki.

Izuku focused on the heat, the texture, the density, the shape, and the stream. Nearly every factor had to be changed to make the blue flame work. But he was successful. The intense heat from the blue flame more than matched the red.

The ice built up around him in an attempt to nullify some of the heat his left was causing. His ice had to grow and increase as the blue flame was pushing back his. The heat washed over him. "The opening is now!" Izuku shouted.

The three made a mad dash for Todoroki. Two from his left and one from his right. Ice lanced over at Shoji. The large teen rolled out of the way. Ice crept up his legs. The fire armor moved to counter it.

Kirishima and Hagakure on the other hand were not impeded. That was until Todoroki sent fire from his foot. Hagakure was quick to act covering both of them in the fire cape. The flame washed over them in pulses. Unfortunately, for Todoroki he was started to sweat and overheat.

"Give in or I'll push deeper!" Izuku shouted over the roaring flames. Izuku knew what the purple flames felt like. With that knowledge he could probably make white flames that could compete at that level. It would burn him too though.

Todoroki wasn't sure if Izuku was bluffing or not. He had to risk it though. "Hit me with your best shot!" Todoroki replied smirking a bit.

Izuku closed his eyes. He looked deep within. Endeavor's quirk was humming while it was being used. The quirk had a few built in restraints applied to it. He pulled out those restraints one by one. The fire that was Hellflame blossomed. It erupted like a raging inferno within his quirk space. It took a bit but he had to reorganize the space to give his other quirks space. Satisfied he reached into the raging inferno. The flames licked his skin and caused a mental pain. The core was deeper. Further he reached.

He reached the core of Hellflame. It was a smoldering ember. Touching it he felt his worries wash away as absolute confidence filled his being. Then he pulled ripping the core from the raging inferno. The confidence faded away and the warmth of the sun filled his body. He had fundamentally altered the quirk within his space. A feat he didn't think possible.

Izuku opened his eyes and the red flame of his given armor turned to blue. The blue flame coming from him exploded in size and potency. Todoroki had to put his all into blocking the absolute torrent of blue flame. This blue flame wasn't hot anymore. His resistances had improved with his quirk. It was evolution. Izuku was sure of it.

The torrent of blue flame stopped abruptly. Fire washed over Izuku. It was like a warm bath. Todoroki stopped seeing the limited effect he had. Izuku face went dead serious, "I suggested you dodge this."

Izuku held up one hand. White flame took over his palm before it shot out. The flame was concentrated and pretty small compared to the torrent before. The entire area around them heated up. The moisture in the air was being baked away. The heat was so intense that Uraraka and Bakugo felt it.

Luckily, for his teammates they had on the fire armor. Otherwise they could have very well combusted. Even Aizawa and Pixie Bob were getting worried. This was like the fire that the villain Dabi could produce.

The white beam of fire shout out at Todoroki. He moved for once. He was not about to figure out if his flame or ice could stand up to that. The white beam stopped just after exiting the arena. Kirishima was already on him. The hardened teen clotheslined Todoroki. Hagakure tackled him right afterwards. The two of them combined took him out of the arena.

Izuku's fire was shut off immediately. He fell to his needs. That new fire consumed a ton of stamina. His body was tired and most of his creation 'fuel' had been expended to keep it going. More training he thought. Getting that new and improved Hellflame to be more efficient would be one hell of a challenge.

Two more arena's left. One he knew he couldn't defeat with one quirk. Uraraka would have been his next choice. Aizawa seemed to notice this thinking. "Midoriya, I'm not so cruel that I'd make you go through all that. Choose one to forsake," Aizawa crossed his arms smirking.

That was his choose? To forsake one of them. He thought not. That would not stand. He would rather break the rules than let any of his classmates suffer. "I'll decline. Force Nullification."

He moon leapt over to her ring. (Low gravity jump). Uraraka was sitting down in her ring. Everyone else was floating. Kaminari was the last to float into the air.

"Come to join me, eh?" Uraraka stood up and stretched her limbs.

Izuku leapt up to Kaminari and tapped him. Uraraka glared. Pink lightning coursed over her body. Just as he landed she was on him. He was far to eager to intercept her attack. Seeing this she backed off at the last second. They were just out of arms reach from each other.

"Almost got you," Izuku smiled meeting her scowl.

"If it wasn't exactly what you wanted I would have pursued anyway. So what's next? Let Kaminari down and distract me? Then you'll go for Ashido next? Or maybe something more daring like Koda?" Uraraka guessed circling Izuku.

"Nah, I've got more class than that," Izuku gave a smug smile turning to Ashido. "Ashido care to lay a thick layer of inert acid across the arena? Like the gel slippery stuff?"

If Izuku had to guess Uraraka wasn't going to let them just float away so she should stabilize Ashido acid splurging. "Uh I guess?" Ashido replied hanging upside down in the air. The hero in training rolled up her sleeve and whipped wave after wave of acid onto the arena. Izuku just let it slid off him and build up. Uraraka was dodging into the gaps.

Izuku put his two fingers together. Kaminari was dropped from his stasis. The lightning teen made a splash landing. The blonde teen walked up to Izuku as Uraraka moved a bit away. Uraraka was prepared in a moments notice. She was quick enough and much of the earth under them had been affected by her quirk. If need be she could pull up a slab of earth and block the electricity.

"Ashido, could you shot out a lethal level with precision?" Izuku asked and implied. She bit her lower lip not really looking forward to hurting Uraraka. Then she looked over at Kaminari and the gears begun to churn. Strong acid was an excellent conductor of electricity. That meant she didn't need to hit Uraraka but get close to her. 90% potency stream was sent at Uraraka's feet.

The brunette moved just a little bit seeing it was going to miss. "That was precision? I'm pretty lucky then," Uraraka shrugged before turning back to Izuku.

Izuku leaned over and whispered to Kaminari, "She going to let loose another stream of acid. I want you to send electricity at that one."

"I don't know if anyone told you, but I can't direct my electricity," Kaminari admitted whispering.

"Give it a good try. Plus that acid of hers is more conductive than most metals right now... try 400k volts," Izuku said walking out of Kaminari line of sight.

"Another indiscriminate shock?" Uraraka cocked her head.

"Not quite. Ashido now!" Izuku called out. Ashido nodded and sent out a 100% acidic stream. The stream went wide. Uraraka twisted her body to see the stream, but shrugged seeing it go wide. The crackling lightning from Kaminari did get her attention. He pointed at her with one finger. It was his best to focus the electricity. Izuku put a hand on Kaminari's shoulder. A gentle squeeze gave him the go ahead.

A chunk of earth was ripped up and put up in the way. Uraraka nearly slipped ripping the earthen chunk from the ground. It was more inconvenient than anything. What came next would surprise her for a few weeks. The bolt of electricity shot out from Kaminari. At first it wasn't focused, but the stream of acid must have gotten close enough to bridge the gap. Then the electricity jumped again. This was right next to Uraraka. About 250k volts of electricity jumped to her next. Kaminari then fired off two more in quick succession. If she wasn't twitching and unable to control her muscle now she definitely was now.

Izuku took very little time to free his colleagues. With the help of Ashido, Koda was able to gently remove Uraraka. Her body wasn't accustomed to that much electricity. The only thing that made it difficult to remove her was the fact her muscle would convulse randomly.

Kaminari high fived Izuku, "Holy crap man that was awesome! We totally could have done that on our own."  
"I was only here to enable," Izuku replied jumping out of the ring to Uraraka. Healing didn't do much to combat the electrical damage but at least she was in less pain. "Ashido, Koda, do you guys think you could carry her back? I've got one more to settle," Izuku turned to look at Katsuki arena.

"Ya, sure. Give him hell, tiger," Ashido smiled.

The three fighting Katsuki were not looking good. Izuku allowed multiple quirks to enter his body. _I'm not at full power. I've got maybe 50% stockpile left. Might just have to lean on Hellflame,_ he thought rolling his shoulders.

Aizawa intercepted Izuku. "That's a lot of quirks," the teacher whispered.

"Sometimes doing whats right isn't lawful," Izuku pointed out pushing past Aizawa. The teacher grinned and let him go. The young green-haired teen entered the arena.

"Come on, let's go Pixie," Aizawa beckoned her. She opened her mouth and looked over at Izuku. A bit of worry crossed her face before she nodded and left.

Green lightning coursed over Izuku skin as blue flame erupted from his torso. The pads on his fingers activated. A tungsten ball formed in his right hand. More were readied within the body. "You wanted that rematch right?" Izuku bent his knees and got ready.

Katsuki was tired. "No. I want a proper rematch not this tired shit," Katsuki grumbled.

"Declining? What kind of hero are you?" Izuku wondered.

"One that knows my limit. Round face put up more of a fight then I expected. These clowns just don't know how to coordinate and use teamwork," Katsuki smirked.

Sato groaned, "You're just too good."

"Thanks true, but if Sparkles and Muscles distracted me while Edgar attacked. Then when Edgar attacked Sparkles took pot shots at me. All Muscles would have to do would get me into a grapple while I'm focused on dodging and repelling the other two idiots," Katsuki pointed out. It was a great plan. It would have worked.

Much to Izuku's surprise, Katsuki walked out of the arena. "Now don't take this as a sign of weakness or I'm giving up! I just know what battles I need to fight," Katsuki shouted.

"That was unexpected," Izuku sighed looking to his classmates.

"That was," Sato stated.

"His choice to fight another day rather than humiliate himself is a strong facet of his character," Tokoyami chimed in. "So you're saying he's a pussy?" Dark shadow quipped before Tokoyami smacked him on the ground.

"That's a brilliant blue blaze you've got now, mon ami," Aoyama looked over at Izuku. The flames around him snuffed out.

"Its new," Izuku shrugged walking over to them. His glowing green hand gave them all a quick tap.

They all got to the lodge. Again dinner rush ensued. It was met with way more enthusiasm than yesterday. Mostly because everyone was less tired. Midoriya somehow found himself in the middle of a conversation left and right. It seemed everyone wanted him in their friend circle. Bakugo was probably the only one indifferent to the whole thing.

Ochako was still feeling the effects of the electricity. Every now and then her hand would spasm. This liveliness was just like when class first started. She smiled seeing everyone getting along and working together. The little kid was helping out too. He seemed a bit disgruntled by that.

Midoriya noticed him. He brought away from Jirou and Kaminari chatting about music. He went over to the little kid. He crouched down and whispered a few things. The little kid grimaced a bit. Ochako wondered what they were talking about.

The little kid was guided by Midoriya into the main area. He clapped a few times getting everyone's attention. "Meet Kota Izumi. He's Mandalay's nephew," Midoriya introduced the kid. A few of the friendlier classmates came up to the kid and introduced themselves.

Midoriya crouched down again and whispered to the kid. The kid sighed, "If you guys need more vegetables I brought in some more."

"Those must have been heavy!" Ashido smiled at the kid.

"Y-yeah, a little b-bit," he stuttered blushing under her scrutiny.

"With all these heroes around you, you must want to be a hero too huh?" Kirishima gave the kid a toothy grin. Midoriya sighed and dropped his head.

"Why would I ever want to be a shitty hero? Heroes shouldn't even exist!" Kota turned away and left the heroes-in-training to just maul over that outburst.

Kirishima wanted to go after him. Midoriya stopped him. "Just give him some space. He's had a rough life," Midoriya explained pulling the redhead with him.

Ochako was worried about Kota. That was an unusual reaction after all. She had to ask him about it later.

Darkness had settled and the students of class 1-A decided to have a sort of bonfire. Izuku and Momo were handing out chairs. They were also making smores and telling tells. Izuku noticed that Kota had not gotten his dinner yet. The green-haired teen scooped some of the leftover soup and made a spoon. From his best recount Kota exited sometime around the start of dinner and went towards the cliff side. The cliff was probably the best location regardless to check.

Izuku excused himself and walked into the forest. He had one person sneaking behind him. "Uraraka, it's hard to sneak up on someone that can literally feel the area around them," Izuku looked back right at her.

The brunette sighed and caught up with him. "I was hoping I was outside of the range," she sounded a bit defeated.

"My range is about 30 meters and 270 meters empowered," Izuku told her smirking. (98.5ft, 886ft)

"270 meters! What?! So there's no way to track you without you knowing," Uraraka was surprised.

"That's not entirely true. Met someone that I couldn't sense," Izuku admitted.

"That's a scary thought," Uraraka replied. There was an awkward pause. Awkward for her. He had a mission after all. "What'cha doing with the soup?" her natural accent peaked through.

He hadn't here her accent much, but he knew she was from the outskirts of japan. Her accent was a bit rural compared to his. "I'm taking this soup to the lad earlier," Izuku mimicked her accent.

Uraraka blushed realizing her accent slipped. "Where is this lad?" her accent was gone.

He smirked from her answer, "He ran up this mountain here." She rolled her eyes.

"Is there a path or something?" Uraraka asked.

Izuku tapped his nose and nodded. "Just watch. You would have never guessed."

After 10 minutes they were up on the cliff side. "Kota, I know you're there. I brought you something to eat."

A voice came from the cave, "I'm not hungry."

"Oh don't give me that attitude. A growing boy like you needs as much as you can get," Izuku retorted.

Kota groaned walking out from the cave. "I'm surprised he listens to you. He hates heroes after all," Uraraka chimed in.

"I made a promise to him," Izuku handed the bowl to Kota who took it.

"A promise?" Uraraka wondered.

"Its his to share. I'm not telling anyone," Izuku held up his hand and walked away. He sat down at the cliff side. "How long has it been since you've seen the stars, Uraraka?" he pointed up.

This was the first time in months she had seen the stars. The view was beautiful. "Wow," she gasped walking up to the ledge.

"I know right?" He looked up at her, "I think when I make it big I'll have a mountain house just for the view."

She nodded still awestruck. Kota chimed in, "All this hero talk is stupid. What's the point of villains or heroes?" The kid was bitter and rightfully so.

"Kota, I don't know if I can explain it to you as you are. But I do have one thought on it: heroes shouldn't exist. We are the byproduct of those in the world that have chosen to use their gifts to maim, to murder, to steal, and to do as they please," Izuku explained. "I personally wish for a world where heroes aren't needed, but that is not our reality."

Uraraka looked down at him. That was a real moment from him. She decided to sat down next to him. She bumped into him and whispered, "That was really inspiring."

"Thanks. I didn't mean too," Izuku rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"It's great I think. You've brought all of us together and thinking about each other's quirks. Somehow you've done it again," she chuckled, "You've managed to inspire all those around you."

A light red blush came over his cheeks. "I'm not that inspiring."

Uraraka smirked at him. Her forearm pushed into his arm pushing him. "Come on give yourself some credit. You got _him_ to believe again even if it's just words right now. Let's go back and let him pine over his food." She got up first and held out a hand for him.

"Thanks," Izuku blushed feeling embarrassed and a tinge of pride. They left Kota to his own devices. The rest of the night was pretty boring and relaxing. Katsuki, Momo, and Todoroki were the only ones that seemed to realized that Uraraka and Izuku had a private conversation. Each of them had their own thoughts as to what that could be.


	31. Hell Week - Thursday

Drakonite227: Sorry about the long hiatus! New job, wife's pregnancy and life in general have hit me hard these last few months. Regardless I'm going to do a twofer. Unfortunately it will be a bit of a cliffhanger, but alas don't fret I'll try to post once a month. I've got a few chapters saved up and ready.

Also I've been thinking about integrating the movie but I still haven't found a good spot for it. Again sorry for the hiatus. Now to the chapter!

* * *

**Hell Week - Thursday**

Aizawa was at the front of class. Everyone was up and early. Some were doing stretches in anticipation of whatever crazy thing they would be asked to do next. Those that had a suspicion were spot on. "Since today has been promised we'll go easy on you all. We're going to hold a triathlon of sorts. You will all start at that mountain's summit and then end up over to the further lodge on the lake's shore," Aizawa explained pointing at the sole mountain nearby.

"Wait there's a lake over that way?" Momo asked thinking about the geography.

"There is indeed one. Its not on any maps though. The lake is kind of a like a hero's retreat. This time of year its usually vacant," Aizawa explained before clearing his throat, "You all have until noon to make it. So get to it."

Before everyone blasted off, Izuku had one question, "Are the teachers going to hinder us this time like before?"

"I don't think we need to. The trek is nearly 20 kilometer. That being said if I see anyone flying they will be taken out of the air with extreme prejudice," Aizawa threatened walking off.

"Come on everyone, let's get there!" Momo shouted to encourage them. The class groaned a bit seeing the absolutely daunting task ahead of them.

Izuku flew by, "Guys, he didn't say we couldn't use our quirks! Let's show them that all that training has paid off!" Now they were fired up. Engines revved. A capsule of sugar was popped. Explosions roared. Ice coalesced. Acid spattered on the ground. Sero was already swinging through the treeline. Mineta was bouncing from grape to grape maintaining a good pace. Uraraka tapped Shoji dropping him down to 20% weight. Hagakure got a pair of stakes from Momo and followed Todoroki.

Izuku couldn't help but smile seeing everyone work together to get the triathlon done. It was time to do his part. He had spent years analyzing quirks. Now was a good time to help those that struggled to keep up. Help them find new ways to use their quirk.

Tokoyami was the first to help out. He was running trying to keep up with the pack. "Tokoyami, can't Dark Shadow help you out?" Izuku asked him.

"Well, he comes from me so I could probably swing around like Sero," Tokoyami replied.

Izuku thought about the birdman's quirk. The shadow came from him was correct. But it operated under its own set of physics. _Eureka! _Izuku thought. "How about wrapping him around you and have him carry you. You could probably even fly like that," Izuku smiled at him.

"He's not very strong with all this sunlight around," Tokoyami retorted.

"I could make you a cloak," Izuku offered.

Tokoyami smiled for once. "Sure. Could you make it black?"

"Sure thing!" Izuku held out his arm and focused. His skin glowed a spectrum of green for a second or two as a full blown cloak came out. It was a midnight black cloak with a bit of a collar. Tokoyami took the garment and put it on. He kind of looked like a birdman dracula. The cloak was completely opaque too. Dark Shadow came out in full force under the cloak.

"I'll have to add this to my hero costume. Dark Shadow see if you can pick me up," Tokoyami requested.

Much to his surprise and Izuku's the dark being picked Tokoyami up pretty easily. "Man, I forgot how scrawny you are," Dark Shadow teased.

"Yeah, yeah, think you could move us around like this?" Tokoyami wondered.

"Are you saying I get to control where we're going? I might drop ya for fun then!" Dark Shadow stuck out his tongue.

"Don't make me pummel you into the ground," Tokoyami retorted. They were like siblings arguing.

Izuku chuckled, "Dark Shadow show everyone just how fast you can go."

That seemed to break the fight between them. "You got it boss! Time to go turbo!" Dark Shadow pulled tentatively forward, back, left, right, up and down. Then he shot off. Tokoyami was flying low to ground like an old school superhero. He passed right by others. Izuku cheered. Overwhelming success.

Uraraka was close to last since she helped out so many of her fellow students. Reducing everyone's gravity to 20% made them look like they were on the moon. Shoji and Sato got to use their tremendous strength to flying across the ground. Aoyama had a similar albeit much funner approach from the combined quirks. His laser propelled him soaring just above the treeline. It was already powerful enough to propel him at 100% gravity at 20% he was like a spaceship or jet.

Koda would have been slow if not for a massive buck he called to help him. He was riding it like a horse and the deer was nearly that large. It was unusually large for a Sika Deer. Almost like a moose than a deer. Either way Koda was riding one and keeping up with some of the further students.

Kyoka was surprisingly capable with a pair of roller skates and low gravity. She was like a punk rock goddess staking through the rough terrain of the forest.

Kirishima was the furthest behind once Tokoyami took flight. "Hey, Uraraka, want to play a game?" Izuku shouted over to Uraraka. Pink lightning was crackling over her skin. She was just about to take off as well.

In two strides she made her way to him, "What's up?"

"I think there's a way we can help out Kirishima and get ourselves out into the lead," Izuku pointed to Kirishima who was leaping around with low gravity but still was lagging behind badly.

Uraraka smirked maybe thinking what he was. "Kirishima!" she shouted getting his attention, "Want to show everyone the manliest display ever?!"

"Of course, I do," he stopped letting them catch up, "What's up?"

"I hope you quirk is manly enough to withstand this," Izuku warned.

"You better believe it is!" He grinned hardening. Izuku swapped around his quirks: Explosion, Force Nullification, and Body Empowerment. All others were off.

They nodded to each other. Uraraka burst from her spot. She was bouncing from tree to tree at a fevered rate. "Uraraka go long!" Izuku shouted.

"Wait what are we doing?" Kirishima asked a bit worried.

"Just," Izuku reached out and grabbed Kirishima's wrist. "Don't focus," 80% Force Nullification activated. "Too much on," Izuku pivoted spinning both him and Kirishima. "Where you're going!" Izuku spun him a few times before launching Kirishima through the treeline.

Branches and leafs exploded from the treeline as Eijirou was thrown like a missile. If not for the sudden speed and wind Kirishima would be screaming right now. It dawned on him that Uraraka and Midoriya were using him like a relay baton. Too bad he was alive and falling from this height would still hurt like hell even with his quirk.

Just as he reentered the treeline, Uraraka caught him activating full Force Nullification. All the sudden speed was gone. They dropped to the ground and his gravity returned to normal. "Sorry about that, but please just endure it for a bit longer," She apologized.

The sound of explosions caught his attention. Midoriya was flying at basically ground level at them. He was moving fast. Then just like that he zipped by them. "Why is he moving so fast?" then dread hit him, "Wait don't tell me you're even stronger."

Uraraka made a pained expression, "Sorry!" Pink lightning crackled from her body. One hand got his wrist and another his triceps before he could react. Gravity left him again. Her strength nearly cracked his armor. Midoriya had made a few rotations before throwing him. Uraraka was not even comparable.

Uraraka made one rotation at high velocity and shouted, "25% Throw!"

It took Eijirou a second or two to realize he was soaring through the air. He had just been thrown like he was a baseball or something. The next thing that went through his mind was: _Man, I've been airborne for awhile now_. If he had to guess he was going to impact the mountain side at this rate.

Eijirou looked down to see Iida leading the pack. Katsuki was closing on him. Todoroki and Hagakure were in third and fourth respectively. Well they were until Midoriya blazed past them. Midoriya stopped part way up the mountain side and just watched.

Eijirou closed his eyes being a bit scared of what would happen next. Then the wind was gone. "She wasn't going to let you just hit the ground like," Midoriya pulled him down from being just above the ground.

"What was that?" Eijirou asked.

"I guess, she can apply her quirk again to things she's already touched. Whatever force they had would just be gone an instant," Midoriya theorized before padding Eijirou on the pack. A chunk of gravity was removed, "Let's see if we can beat those guys to the summit."

Eijirou smirked scaling the mountain side with ease. He looked back to see Midoriya scanning the treeline and the few that broke it. Midoriya turned to him and smiled, "Go on without me. I'll catch up."

Eijirou nodded as Midoriya jumped back down the mountain.

As far as mountains go this one was rather safe to climb. It was mostly smooth with a few summits before the peak. Thankfully, they didn't have to go to the peak and then back down. Either way Momo wasn't too worried about everyone making it by Noon. The raven-haired teen was staying in last to make sure no one was left behind. She didn't even want to think about what would happen if anyone failed. Izuku and her had coined this 'Hell Week' and it caught on like wildfire.

The treeline thinned as they got closer to the mountain. Momo took a huge breath of fresh air as she broke the treeline. The mountain breeze was sweeping down and it was glorious. Just like before no one had any quirks that were ill-suited to the task of scaling the mountain. The low gravity was really helping a lot. Then out of the blue Izuku pasted her.

She looked back. That was weird. Momo panicked wondering if she had missed anyone. She chastised herself for taking this trek so easily. Then she was torn. She could go back and make sure he's okay. Or she could press on with everyone else. Momo took a deep sign and decided to press on.

Izuku can handle himself just fine she hoped. He was after all the most capable of them. Instead she would focus on those that really needed the aid.

Tree zipped by as Izuku zigzagged through the forest pinging his telekinetic radar. He was worried about Uraraka. Her quirk could take a massive toll on her. She was already doing a lot for everyone. Being her she was bound to think about herself last.

A hit on his radar. He made a beeline. Izuku came to a skidding halt. Uraraka was clutching stomach. A bit of rainbow vomit drool was on her lips. She laughed seeing him, "I might have over done it a bit."

Izuku sighed, "You don't have to show off like that."

She tried to smirk, but coughed in the middle of it. "Plus Ultra," she weakly said.

"You're still maintaining them all aren't you?" Izuku asked.

She nodded, "I can't let them down. I can't let myself down. Or All Might. Or worse you."

He walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder, "You're not. I think you're incredible, but you need to look out for yourself too. Now hop on my back and let's get this done together."

Uraraka blushed, "I, ah, can walk just fine."

"Nope. I'm not taking no for an answer. Or would you prefer a different way to be carried?" Izuku smirked knowing the reaction he would get. He wasn't terribly dense. He knew that he had a few girls already thinking about him like that. He just wasn't ready to do anything with their feelings. Which hurt Momo already, but it was for the best. At least in his mind.

Uraraka's blush spread across her whole face. "No, that's fine! I-I'll h-hop on your b-back," she stammered nervously.

"Good," he replied turning around and kneeling down. She couldn't help but blush leaning over and putting an arm around his neck. He stood up holding one thigh in each hand. Her hands were on his shoulders for support. "Please don't push yourself and puke on me," Izuku lamented.

Uraraka giggled, "I'll try to warn ya first."

\- An Hour Later -

Izuku with Uraraka in tow stood on the summit. They looked out to the hidden lake. It was definitely a large lake. The lodge in the distance looked like a speck on the beach. A few of them had already made it to the water. Todoroki made a ice bridge for those that swimming didn't work too well.

"Look at them go. I'm jealous that I won't be able to see Asui swim through the water like a dolphin," Uraraka pouted.

Izuku smiled, "Don't worry we'll get down there soon enough. I could probably slide down the slope and get to the bridge before Todoroki melts it."

"Its alright. I choose to overexert myself," Uraraka shock her head.

"Are you sure? I think it'll be fun," Izuku retorted.

"Oh yeah, fun for you. I'll be screaminngg!" Uraraka indeed did scream for the first few seconds. Izuku was sliding down on a telekinetic slide. It was fun as hell. He could see why Todoroki liked to slide on his ice.

"Hold on tight! This will be one hell of a roller coaster," Izuku shouted flying down the slope. Uraraka almost choked him out from panic. Her bosom was pressing into his neck. If not for the rush and focus he would have been a little flustered from the contact.

It was like a standing water slide. They flew across the ground zipping right and left. Their hair flowed in the wind. Uraraka relaxed finally trusting Izuku. She looked around and couldn't help but smile. The view was amazing and seeing the looks on everyone's face was priceless. Many of their fellow classmates were watching them from the lodge. It was a mixture of concern and amusement. That was until Ashido started to cheer. Izuku realized they must have been close to the cut off.

The ice bridge was beginning to dissolve. It was now or never. Uraraka released her quirk figuring they were the only ones left. In a smooth motion she dropped from his back. "Got one more good throw left in you?" She asked as the ice bridge crumbled. The lake was nearly a kilometer across. Izuku would have to shot for the moon.

"I think I've got just enough juice left for one good pitch," Izuku grinned bulking up his body.

"I'll nullify you in return then," Uraraka grabbed his wrist at the same time he got hers.

"On the count of three activate your quirk," he said and she nodded.

"One," Izuku pumped more power into his muscles.

"Two," Telekinesis picked her up and nullification was added to her. Another hand gripped her triceps.

"Three!" Izuku pivoted and launched her all at once. Just as she left his hold her fingers came into contact with his hand. Izuku felt his weight leave him. He shot off rocketing across the water. Uraraka was going to hit the ground pretty hard but knowing her she would just use her quirk.

By the half way mark Izuku's zoom noticed Aizawa. He was sitting on the other side with a watch. Izuku grimaced and turned on the afterburners. His arms would hurt pretty good after this. Stopping would be his next biggest worry.

A worry that came immediately. As soon as he crossed the sand his arms flew in front of him. Two blasts roared from his hands. His shoulders made a popping sound and bones broke. If not for his concussive resistance the change in g force would have KO'ed him.

His healing factor kicked in but that didn't save him from the pain. Izuku dropped to his knees on the sand. Sand? Izuku looked around and saw they were on a beach front. Aizawa clapped slowly. "Made it here with an hour to spare. Congrats, the rest of the day is yours," their instructor stated before going into the lodge.

Mandalay was standing next to him and rolled her eyes. "Just as promised, time for a b-day bash!" She cheered.

Ragdoll popped her head out a window, "Come round back! We've got the whole thing setup!"

"I bet it's a completely lame," Kaminari chuckled.

Izuku groaned standing up. The rest of the class were already moving on. Aizawa stopped Izuku with a hand on his shoulder. "I don't want to have to catch you out tonight. Got that?" the man asked.

"I don't have any plans, but I can't make promises," Izuku smirked looking up at Aizawa. That made the teacher grin back.

Aizawa thwamped him across the head, "Try to have some fun. You've earned it." The green-haired teen rubbed his head. When he got to the back, he was surprised to say the least. The stunned look on Ashido's face told a better story. Pink, purples, and dark blues as far as the eye could see.

"Is that a 'My Alien Life' theme?" Izuku wondered looking around. Ashido caught his attention. Her eyes were sparkling at him. _Oh no._

"You know MAL?" she squealed. Not a normal reaction. Ashido always had the most energy of everyone but this was different. It was elevated to new heights.

"Ya, MAL's a pretty good anime," Izuku blushed and looked away feeling embarrassed to admit this, "I still watch the new episodes on Saturday." He chuckled a bit feeling really silly now.

"I used to watch that when I was a kid," Momo admitted.

"Same here. Until the training kicked it I loved that show," Todoroki added in.

The rest of the class admitted that they all have seen the show to some degree. Then it was Ashido's turn, "Its my favorite show. Something about the main character always spoke to me."

_Alien Queen makes sense now,_ Izuku thought before speaking, "You kind of look like her just more.. pink." It wasn't meant as a compliment, but Ashido got a small bit lilac.

"Well birthday girl what do you want to do?" Momo asked.

"Do the adults have any fun games too?" Ashido shouted at the lodge.

Mandalay came out of the lodge with a very solid looking rubber ball. "We may not have the tech for a techno-ball but we've got quirk-enhanced materials and that will have to do," She pointed out. Ashido clapped her hands together and was just so excited for the reveal. Many others were confused. Izuku widened his eyes in realization. 'No' he whispered.

Pixie Bob jumped from the roof and came down on an earthen slide. "You better believe it. If any of you strapping lads show off too much I'll know who to pick," she was grinning.

Tiger came through the door like a herculean gumby (Some would call him Gumbercules). He tussled Pixie's hair. "Don't harass them," he smiled. She pushed away his hand.

"Hey, I've only got a few good years left," Pixie complained.

Mandalay cleared her throat, "I thought we could play a game of Vol Quil. For those that don't know its a world class game played on her homeworld."

"She played it at her high school and popularized the game. Vol Quil became part of our world as much as it was for hers," Ashido pointed out. It was clear she was a fangirl through and through.

Izuku paled, "Vol Quil is for enhanced individuals. Which is kind of us..."

"Bingo. Hit it on the head," Mandalay threw the ball at Ashido, "Pixie made a nice area to play in." Mandalay beckoned them to join. Ashido was all smiles and followed. Momo shrugged and followed suit. Izuku was hoping to rest and hung his shoulders. He lagged behind them.

The field was pulled 1:1 from the show. There was two goals on both ends. Just like the show every detail was there. The field, the battleground, could be mistaken for a skater park. But that was the way it was designed. The ramps weren't a few feet. They were easily four to six foot high. The game is a mixture of basketball, football, and team death match. While Izuku doubted the death match it would be tough.

"Then we need teams!" Ashido cheered putting her fist to the sky.

"About that-" Mandalay started to say.

"I nominate myself and Yaomomo as team captains!" Ashido interrupted the pro. The pro sighed and just let her decide.

"So what like middle school pick your teams? Its got to be more fair than that," Iida spoke up.

"I'll choose-" Ashido started to say.

Then Momo interrupted, "If either of us choose Izuku the other team gets two picks in a row."

Ashido pouted but choose, "Izuku anyway." She stuck out her tongue at Momo.

Momo _smirked, _"Bakugo and Iida."

Izuku gulped. That was a damn good pick. Ashido was really enjoying this, "Tokoyami."

Tokoyami looked around and pointed to himself, "Me?"

"Ya you," Ashido pointed at him. The bird head teen walked to Izuku's side.

He whispered, "Never had that happen. I'm usually last to be picked."

Izuku whispered back, "Dark Shadow is pretty strong. I could make you a opaque poncho or something for Dark Shadow and bring up light resistance."

"She was probably counting on you," Tokoyami smirked.

"Tsu," Momo said next. Another good pick.

"Ojiro," Ashido retorted.

"Sero,"

"Sato,"

"Jirou,"

"Mineta," Momo blinked a few times hearing Ashido pick him and early.

"Kirishima," Momo hesitated to say. Ashido cursed under breath.

"Shoji,"

"Kaminari,"

"Hagakure,"

"Aoyama,"

"Uraraka,"

Two students were left: Todoroki and Koda. Todoroki felt out of place. Getting picked last wasn't normal for him. He was a powerhouse after all. A powerhouse that conflicted with both groups. It was a question of how much. Koda was truly the one to be picked last or at least had that feeling.

"Koda," Momo smirked.

Izuku whispered, "Well played."

"Todoroki," Ashido sighed. With no one left the game could begin.

Mandalay and Pixie Bob laid out the ground rules. Typical no killing or maiming. How to score points. Timer and half time. She also made it very clear that breaking any ethical morals would result in an extra week of quirk strengthening. Lastly, quirks can go the distance. "Got it? Now choose your 8 players and let's get this started!" Mandalay announced being the unofficial referee.

Momo, Aoyama, Bakugo, Sero, Asui, Kaminari, Kirishima, and Jirou were Team Momo choices. Iida and Koda warmed the bench for now. Ashido made a few interesting choices: Uraraka, Todoroki, Ashido, Shoji, Mineta, Ojiro, Hagakure, and Tokoyami. Leaving Izuku and Sato to warm the bench. Izuku was thankful of that choice. His healing hadn't completed nor did his stockpile replenish yet.

The 8 players on both teams were raring and excited. Mandalay was in the center. Tiger was right behind her with the ball. "Ready!" Mandalay said as Tiger primed the toss. "Set!" the elastic man coiled a more. "GO!" Mandalay shouted both in head and in person. At that moment the ball was launched into the air.

Izuku watched from the side lines. He tentatively flexed his arms. The pain was still there. Super Regeneration was weakening or it was changing. He made a mental note to look more into later.

\- Another Hour Later -

Halftime hit. It was a brutal game so far. A game that Izuku had been somewhat paying attention too. His own quirk took focus. He had to figure out more about its core. If not he wasn't going to get any better. The green-haired teen could easily strengthen and evolve his copied quirks, but not his main one. A slap on the back woke Izuku from his deep quiet mumbling. A habit that was slowly returning to him.

"I-zu-ku!" Ashido said pretty close to him.

He jumped away from her and almost slipped. "What?" Izuku asked seeing it was halftime.

"Its halftime. They gave us a 15 minute break. You're in and so is Sato. Todoroki and Uraraka need the rest," Ashido directed much like a coach would. This side of her wasn't something he was used to.

"What's the score?" Izuku wondered.

She rose an eyebrow and scanned him up to down, "They're winning 2 to 1."

"No big goals yet huh?" Izuku smirked stretching.

"Kirishima is a good goal keeper and so is Bakago. But Bakago and Aoyama are being benched for rest. This is our shot," Ashido clenched her fist.

"How is everyone holding up?" Izuku wondered.

"Pretty good. Uraraka pulled more than her fair share," Ashido pointed out. Izuku merely nodded. Ashido knew something was up. "If you're not up for it, you can let me know. No shame in sitting," Ashido teased.

"I'm good. I was just... distracted," Izuku hesitated.

"I can see that," Ashido lightly smacked his arm and joined the rest of her team.

An odd feeling washed over Izuku. His telekinesis picked up all those around him. He could tell most were having conversations, laughing, or gloating. Yet he was alone. A similar feeling of dread from his childhood came back. Talking to people and growing his confidence was the way to squash that feeling. Yet of all places it came back.

Before they knew it 15 minutes had passed. Izuku had been on the field since his realization. Ashido padded his back. "I'm counting on you," she teased.

"I'll make sure to rock them," Izuku smirked.

He looked up at her and she was smiling. A giddy smile. "I was doubting you watched the show. But then you go and quote it," Ashido stated.

Izuku smiled back and then got a bit nerdy, "'Of all the stars to call my home, its this green marble where I feel most comfortable'." Ashido smile was ear to ear. That really blew her mind.

"Alright nerd, let's go win," she raised up her hand like a high five.

"Vol Quil," Izuku slapped her hand.

\- Elsewhere -

A man wore black tactical gear. He had one signature around his neck. His crimson scarf flowed in the wind. From his binoculars he could see the students of UA. Both class A and B. This sights were particularly focused on Izuku. The man wasn't sure he was a pretender yet. His initial vibe was heart and soul of a hero. He needed more confirmation than his feeling.

"Stain," a radio at his side got his attention.

"Stain, here," Stain replied.

"Status report," the voice inquired.

"Class A is having a birthday party. Class B is being worked to the bone," Stain explained.

"A birthday... party?" the voice was surprised and perplexed.

"Yeah, that things kids do when they live another year," Stain retorted smirking a bit.

A few laughs in the background told Stain that his inquirer was not alone. That was good. "Everyone prepped and ready for a raid as you call it?" Stain asked.

From the background a few voices chimed in, "Yeah, these syringes and things are totally awesome." "My trench coat is new." "I found that same black suit you got Stain! Even got myself a katana like you." "This body suit is a bit tight. But its lovely!" Stain chuckled at all the different people that had joined because of him.

"Yes, our epics are all equipped. Most of us got our spec down too. Any more news to report?" Shigaraki asked his references being a clear giveaway.

"Midoriya continues to grow. His flames are blue now with a new dangerous variant," Stain explained.

Dabi voice was a bit quiet but Stain could still hear him, "That old man was never good at teaching anybody."

Shigaraki ignored the comment, "So what some kind of white fire?"

"Bingo. From what I can tell. Its so hot he doesn't have any defense to it yet," Stain pointed out.

"Good to know, but that's a bit concerning. Not only can he copy your spec and use it, but he can get class upgrades too... Tomorrow. For now Kurogiri get him," Shigaraki requested.

"Much obliged," Kurogiri replied now standing next to Stain.

"What do you think Kurogiri?" Stain asked the living void portal.

"I think this Izuku is more to our master than he let's on. Otherwise he would have just stolen his quirk by now," Kurogiri somberly stated. Stain gulped. That was not something he thought the league's master was capable of. The very thought that someone could do that sent a chill down his spine.

"I've got some more information, but I'll share it with them. Are you worried?" Stain asked as the portal was formed.

"Very. This kid is too powerful for his own good," Kurogiri stated.

"Good. I'd hate to see him go down like punk. After all he's going to be the symbol of peace one day," Stain smirked walking through the portal.

Just like that they were back in the hideout. Everyone was wearing some kind of quirk related or villainous looking get up. Except Magne she preferred the casual look.

"Muscular, I've got a good place for you," Stain smirked catching the man's attention.

"And why should I listen to you?" Muscular wondered.

"Let's just say if you can win you'll the strongest one here," Stain stated.

Muscular rubbed his chin in the thought, "Count me in."

\- Around 10pm at the Lake Lodge -

Izuku was reading the news on his phone. A knock came at his door. "What now?" Izuku grumbled getting up. His shorts were good enough. Plus its not like everyone hasn't seen him shirtless. He pulled the door open. To his surprise Ashido was standing there. Her PJ's were a shirt and shorts. There was just something about the way she looked that caught his eye.

"Ashido, what brings you here?" Izuku asked leaning up against the door frame. A stone watchdog was just out of his sight. It wasn't really necessary he had no plans to do anything.

Ashido looked conflicted. She looked like she was trying to drive her courage. Finally after an awkward moment or two, she spoke, "I... I just want to thank you. For today."

"Its was no big deal. I'd do it again in a heartbeat if you or anyone else asked," Izuku admitted.

She bit her lip, "There you go saying the right things again."

Izuku smiled, "Why are you really here?"

Ashido looked away and sighed, "I never imagined it would be this hard." Ashido looked back to him, "I never had a lot growing up. My parents were so concerned about my quirk and protecting the world from it that somewhere along the way we forgot to celebrate the little things. They were always so afraid of all the damage I could do. The villain I could be." She was tearing up a bit. "You know they told me that 'All it takes is one bad day and anyone could be a villain'. As if!" She collected herself for a second. "Sorry. My mouth just flows sometimes." She laughed. "What I should have said is thank you. The last birthday I can remember was when I was 6. I just wanted to tell you in person that I'll cherish today."

Izuku had been smiling the whole time. He had inspired her to reach out with her soul for once instead of her words. He brought up his right hand and gently squeezed her shoulder. "Let's make sure it's not the last happy memory we make in this class," he gave her another gentle squeeze and then took his arm away.

"Hmm," she nodded and turned away. She took a few steps and stopped. He could tell she was biting her lip even though he couldn't see her do it. "C-could you call me, M-mina from now?"

"Of course. Good night, Mi-na," Izuku said it slow.

"G-good night, Midoriya," she said before finally leaving. She wasn't used to her feelings and mind not intersecting. Izuku went back to bed. He'll have to pine over that for awhile before he really could make anything of it.

* * *

Drakonite227: A nice slow chapter with a bit of fluff and growth. On to Friday the day we've all been waiting for. A particular fight in canon is coming up next chapter and let me tell you its a tough one for Izuku to win.

My Alien Life. It was inspired sort of by My Little Pony and 3Below. Its supposed to be a mix of Magic Girl/Supernatural. A show that would work rather fittingly in a superpowered world like theirs. I'll probably explain more as Ashido comes into the limelight a little more in the future.


	32. Hell Week - Friday P1

Drakonite227: This is the twofer! Its been awhile since I've posted two chapters in the same week. But don't get used to it. The next post will be around December 6th or 7th. But without further ado, here's the chapter!

* * *

Better Known as the Bloody Night.

\- Haze of Smoke and Ash -

The forest was ablaze all around him. The smoke clouded his vision and choked his lungs. His stupor had been caused by the carnage around him. His flames had spread uncontrollably to everything around. It wasn't the tree or the lodge on fire that tore at his heart.

It was his friends. It was his family. All laid charred before him. Heroes from all walks of life were circling him. They wanted him to pay in time or blood whatever he had more of to spare. Then the moment that shattered reality. All Might stood just outside of the flames. Just a few feet from him. That face was not his usual one of smiling and stoic bravery. It was anger and rage. Rage directed at Izuku.

The green-haired boy knew he didn't have a lot of time before they came after him. He tried to speak but no words came. He looked around for any help but the screams and the charred flesh reminded him that was all gone now.

All Might acting first. The first attack thrown had force and wind. Just like that Izuku's nightmare had been shattered.

\- First Morning's Light -

The green-haired teen woke up, his bed drenched in sweat. "What the hell was that? My fears?" Izuku said sitting up. His flames were illuminating the room. They were the 'on' type flames that didn't burn anything. They were flickering between green and blue. The flames looked teal because of that.

"Huh that's different. Suppose I can just let that do as it pleases," he shrugged and got up. Even with putting on some clothes the flames didn't die. They just flowed on top them.

Izuku was up before everyone. Dawn had just cracked the horizon. None of the pussycats or Aizawa were out and about either. Morning exercise was always his go too. Or training in this case.

He walked out to the lake shore. His telekinesis activated. As it grew stronger the glow of his eyes and a light green aura started to manifest around him. The glow of his eyes was news to him. Unfortunately, it was pointed out by an enemy. That was the thing. All quirks had a tell. They are all physical parts of us. When his 'One For All' was channeled into a quirk it caused that green lightning. For his telekinesis the lightning was in his eyes. It was probably the hardest of them to tell.

The water of the lake was cold. His empowered telekinesis could support his weight. He made a platform just under the water. It almost looked like he was walking on water. It took him a minute or two to reach the middle of the lake. The telekinetic board under him was shrunk to just his feet.

The green-haired teen sat down on the water. Green and blue fire poured out of his body. It was an almost teal color. Water sizzled around him. These flames, this fire, already cause him mental anguish. The desire to control them was made that much more important. Meditation was the perfect for this quirk.

Izuku hadn't been the only one that woke up early that morning. Albeit it wasn't on purpose. Mandalay stood on the balcony of a room at the lodge. A headache was throbbing in her skull and temples. Probably safe to call it a migraine at this point. It was a side-effect of her quirk. However, it had been years since the last time she could remember that throbbing pain.

Her quirk allowed her to project her thoughts into others. Often used to calm people or psychic screams to disorientate villains. Sometimes her quirk would make a two way link with certain people. Typically, people with psychic quirks. She presumed that was due to some higher function of her brain that was open in similar psychic quirks. Midoriya possessed a psychic quirk among many others. This was the first time it made a two-way connection with her. Mandalay's only guess was the traumatic flashes and visions that the boy had in his nightmare.

That little event had woken her up. But this was not her first rodeo. Handling those memories and extreme feelings was easy. The part that frightened her was when she reached out. Something lashed out at her. This something caused her migraine. It was primordial in strength and purpose. This was not the first psychic attack he had endured. The first was much stronger than hers no doubt.

This presence within Midoriya felt like his quirk. Quirk aren't usually sentient. The ones that are are like Dark Shadow. She wanted to ask him about it. His quirk was a mystery to the school and worse it had some really horrible contingency plans. Most of those ended in blood and death. Someone higher up than the UA made that choice. It would never have been a choice Nezu would have made. At least that's what Mandalay believed.

Looking out to the lake, she could see him. His fire burned brightly against the morning light. Briefly, she wondered if going back to bed was the best choice. 'Early bird gets the worm' she thought and shrugged. Nothing a Tylenol couldn't fix after all.

This morning came with a blaring horn. The class of 1A shuffled out of the lodge with tired looks. "Don't give that dead stare and look. We've got a hike ahead of us and its best if we get back before nightfall," Aizawa stated.

A few students yawned and stretched. 'It was too early for this crap' they thought. Mina was the first to gain compose, "Why do we want to get back before nightfall?"

"That's a surprise," Aizawa smirked before turning and pointing, "Who wants to get, Midoriya?"

A few students rubbed their eyes in disbelief. "Is he sitting on the water?" Kaminari asked.

"I mean he can support his weight with his telekinesis," Momo blurted out. She was probably the only one that knew that as a fact.

"What? Since when?" Ashido asked both curious and doubtful.

Momo's cheeks got a bit hot, "A few nights ago he showed me." For some reason she felt a bit ashamed to admit that. Enough to avoid eye contact with Ashido.

"I'll get him," Todoroki volunteered.

"You sure? I could swim out to him," Asui offered.

"I don't think you want to deal with that kind of heat," Todoroki looked over at her. Asui nodded in a barely noticeable manner. A small smile graced his lips, "Sorry. I just didn't want anyone to get hurt." For once if ever a small smile graced the normally stalwart girl. Todoroki took that as a sign that he was making some improvements.

A bridge of ice shot out from the shore to the fiery teen. The bridge was halted or melted as soon as it got within 5 meters of him. Todoroki had good eyes on him. His father had told him that observing a quirk and person can tell you a lot about them. More cases than not villains allowed their quirks to dictate their actions. Oddly, enough, Todoroki thought that Izuku was acting much like these villains his father had talked about.

Ever since Shoto had rested eyes on Izuku, he knew the shorter teen was different. His quirk controlled him up until recently. Even then Shoto had the inclination to think it was more a ploy than truth. He was doubtful by nature after all.

If anything had ever been terrifying to Shoto, it was Izuku. The teen had more power in his body than most of the class combined. Short of someone like All Might or another hero with a hard counter none of them could stand up to him. If that quirk of his turned out to be a monster or worse a puppet master then stopping Izuku would be neigh impossible.

Shoto chastised himself for allowed his imagination to get the better of him. But it was a good idea to at least consider the possibility of such things after all.

"Midoriya! Time to go," Todoroki said standing at the edge of his ice. Nothing. No response. No ice could form any closer. Short of jumping into the water this was the closest he was getting. The ice and fire teen scooted out to the absolute edge of the his ice. In doing so his footing had moved just past the edge and he found it to be solid. Todoroki rose an eyebrow and doubted his own senses.

A tentative foot stepped onto the surface of something. It was hard like concrete but precise. Like a projected force was being used to match his weight. Yaoyorozu wasn't lying at all. Midoriya possessed the ability to stand on his own telekinesis. The implications of this discovery sent a few mad thoughts into his head. Or sane it was a matter of perspective after all.

Todoroki was within arms reach. The flames were warm, gentle. Almost like his father's flames. A harrowing memory crossed his mind. Todoroki shook his head and put a hand on Midoriya.

The reaction that followed was lightning fast. Midoriya had flipped Todoroki over his shoulder. A knee was pressed into Todoroki's abs. It wasn't hard enough to hurt but not terribly pleasant either. Midoriya's eyes were glowing with a green lightning in the iris and arced across the pupil. This was his telekinesis active and empowered. Todoroki didn't know about the empowerment but understood it was his telekinesis.

"Wasn't really prepared for that," Todoroki made the blunt statement.

Midoriya stood from him and chuckled, "Sorry about that. I just reacted."

"How are you doing this may I ask?" Todoroki tried to stand but felt a sizable weight press down on his body.

"This is my kinetic sphere. Outside of it and you're quite safe. Inside is another story. That weight you feel is the result of my telekinesis. Its only reacting to your movement or attempts at least," Midoriya explained.

"You're dangerous. You know that right?" Todoroki asked the question that his mind had been stewing over for the past day or two.

Midoriya's confidence was not easy to shake but hit home. The green-haired teen looked away and held on of his arms. The way he looked screamed insecure and afraid. A fear made by him which was the hardest kind of fear to escape. "Ya, I know. I know very well," his voice didn't have its usually weight to it.

The weight disappeared from Todoroki. Midoriya offered his hand to help him up. With little hesitation the white and red-haired teen took the gesture of kindness. What came next was a bit of a surprise.

Midoriya was quiet just around that of a whisper, "Promise me that if I waver you won't hesitate to correct me. All this power at my fingertips is scary enough. Even more so when I think about the person my quirk can make me into. If a day comes when I have strode to far can I count on you to get everyone together so they can kick my ass?"

Todoroki was speechless for a moment or two. That was a considerable notion of trust that was given. A burden that he didn't know if he could handle. Todoroki after all isn't the poster boy for heroics or morals.

"I don't know if I can match that kind of resolve, truthfully. But I'm not alone anymore so who knows what's possible," Todoroki replied in the same hushed tone.

Midoriya smirked, "Good enough." Standing again Todoroki extended his ice over to them. Midoriya's eyes stopped crackling with lightning.

The folks at the shoreline got a funny scene. Midoriya was not that familiar with ice so slipping and sliding he went. More than twice did the 'peerless' Midoriya fall onto his face or ass. Ice even worse ice with a bit of water on it was not the teen's forte.

"Wonder what they talked about?" Kirishima asked Bakugo.

"Don't care and not interested. They can keep their bromance to themselves," Bakugo shrugged.

"Kind of like yours?" Jirou, the usually quiet one, chimed in.

A bit of rage seeped into his blood, "What's that supposed to mean, emo?"

She huffed. "Dude, chill. Its too early for that stuff," Kirishima reasoned.

Bakugo clenched his fist, "Ya got to save my energy for this 'hike'." Even though Bakugo made fun of the travel back he knew it wasn't that simple. Nothing ever is with UA.

"Come on, class. Let's go. They can catch up," Aizawa stated leading the class not the direction they came.

"Won't it be faster to go over the mountain?" Iida asked pointing due southwest.

"Then it won't be much of a hike now would it?" Aizawa smirked breaking into a jog. A jog to him a full blown run for many of his students. The route he had chosen would bring them around the mountain and through Class B's training area. Aizawa smirked knowing he was about to give Vlad a bad day. If all went well the two classes would get their first interaction together. Positive interactions hopefully.

4 hours had past by the time they made it around the mountain. Many of Class A were not ready or built for that kind of sprint. But that was the meaning of 'Plus Ultra'. Push to the limit and beyond. Then after everything has been given go that extra mile beyond the possible.

Aizawa stopped at ridge overlooking the other class. Even Iida was panting, "That was a workout even for me. I'm amazed nobody passed out from that."

"T-trust me, I'm close," Jirou said wavering on her feet. A familiar brown haired girl gave Jirou her shoulder. "Thanks, Uraraka," Jirou tried to catch her breath bracing on Uraraka.

"No problem. If not for some help we'd all fall down," Uraraka smiled.

"We're going to go through," Aizawa pointed to the battlefield that was the quirk training area for Class B.

"You can't be serious," Kaminari blurted out.

"Dead," Aizawa smirked, "But not without some speed. Midoriya and Yaoyorozu can you make us steel circle sleds?"

"That's pretty reckless," Yaoyorozu spoke up. Midoriya just smirked and removed his shirt. "Izuku, don't encourage it!" she huffed.

"Nothing wrong with saying hello in style is there? Its a bit reckless, sure, but nothing too dangerous," Midoriya reasoned feeling his skin glow and a steel circle sled came out. It was caught before clattering to the ground. Bakugo was the culprit that stole the first sled.

"Come on, Yaozu, let's get this started! I just want to see their faces when we steal the show coming down the mountain like this," Bakugo was grinning like a mad man.

Yaoyorozu sighed was she the only sane one? Holding out her arm the glow of her quirk activated. She could have used her back like Midoriya and make it quick, but that required more... privacy. After a minute or two they all had sleds in hand.

"See ya later losers!" Bakugo kicked off the ridge with an explosion. Midoriya shrugged and threw his sled over the edge.

"Don't forget to use your quirks if you can!" Midoriya jumped off the cliff and let loose an explosion. The green-haired teen caught up to his sled and nearly caught up to Bakugo too.

"I thought this would be scary, but this is amazing!" Ashido cheered tossing down a line of acid and staking her sled right off the edge.

"Uraraka, please tell me you're one of the few sane left," Jirou seeing the brunette stepping back.

"Sorry to disappoint, but this looks fun to me," Uraraka's pink lightning came forth. She sprinted off the edge.

"Anyone with more fear than them, line up!" Yaoyorozu was trying to salvage the situation, "If more of us go at once it'll be less scary."

"I don't know about that because I'm going to steal the dazzle of everyone else," Aoyama boasted getting to the edge.

Sato and Kirishima stood next to him. Asui and Kaminari were after that. Tokoyami sighed and stood with the other five. He gestured to Koda. Dark Shadow came out "Don't worry I've got your back."

Seven now at the ready. "Ready yourselves!" Yaoyorozu stated, "Now JUMP!" All seven obeyed with some hesitation. Kirishima jumping first got everyone into the spirit.

"Next group line up!" Yaoyorozu ushered more to the ledge.

"This looks like a bad idea," Jirou complained before whispering, "It feels like one too."

Hagakure put a hand on Jirou's shoulder, "If I can do it so can you!"

Jirou smirked, "Thank you."

Todoroki went to Jirou's other side. "Don't worry. If you fall I'll put done some ice to ease your fall," Todoroki said drawing a deep breath. He was worried too. Mostly for his classmates.

Ojiro took Todoroki's side. Shoji took Hagakure's side. Sero sighed and fell in behind everyone else. "You guys are crazy," Mineta complained getting in line.

"On my mark, steel your nerves, remember our motto?!" Yaoyorozu gave a pep talk.

"Plus Ultra!" Hagakure cheered and promptly went ahead. The rest looked bewildered by her choice.

"What are you guys waiting for? Plus Ultra!" Yaoyorozu pumped her fist in the air. That got them in gear.

Iida was the only one left. "Waiting for your turn?" Yaoyorozu asked.

"Just wanted to make sure no one got left behind," Iida replied.

"That's my job you know," she scolded.

"Sorry, its a habit," he chuckled.

"How about we catch up to them?" Yaoyorozu offered trying to prevent an awkward conversation.

"Even better: a race," Iida smirked a little.

Yaoyorozu smirked a little to. "Alright you got yourself a deal," she said running with no prompt or warning. "There's no buzzer in real life you know!" Yaoyorozu shouted just before jumping herself.

Iida chuckled again. She was right.

Aizawa watched his class descend the cliffside and the hilly terrain below. He couldn't help but smirk at their progress. Strengthening their quirks could be saved for later. They needed to learn the most important lesson first: application. Many if not all of them were powerful in their own right. The common element lacked was practical application. It was the deciding factor that was used to divide up the some 40 hero students they had.

The pride he felt was the real deal. Aizawa turned around and spotted one extra sled. He genuinely smiled from that. The pro kicked it up into his hands. Midoriya must have left him one. Thankfully, his joints and bones had been saved from the USJ monster thrash. If not for his students he'd probably be in much worse shape.

Aizawa took a moment or two before thinking 'What the hell'. He looked over the edge and did as those before him.

\- Dusk -

Time seemed to be his enemy today. Much of his mind was spent on that nightmare. Even after meeting Class B and having a bit of quirk fun. It was still in his mind like a plague. It gnawed at this thoughts. Worse yet nothing had assured him that fate was not possible.

Nightfall was closing in. Both classes got together for a bonding experience. At what Izuku would like to have called it. They were going to do a rite of passage walk. Most likely hidden scares and quirk enhanced terrors would try to spoke them.

"We're going to choose one from each class to go together," Pixie explained, "The goal is get through the whole path. If you see Ragdoll you're half way! She's got a few surprises too."

"Half of you will be going in now to setup surprises. No maiming! Work together," Mandalay directed.

True to their word. Half the class was split. 10 from class A and B were chosen and practically at random.

Izuku looked around knowing who would volunteer as soon as she asked again. Instead he got to the front, "I'll go first. Let's see just how scary can class B be?"

Kirishima chimed in, "Beat me to the punch!" The redhead playfully messed with Izuku.

"I knew you wanted to go first, so I had to get mine in before you went in. Otherwise they'd been too demoralized to scare me after facing you," Izuku grinned patting Kirishima on the back.

"Fair enough. Can't have them waste all their scares on me," Kirishima smirked back.

"Class B?" Mandalay looked over to the other group of students.

Another individual that possessed green hair stepped forward. "It goes without saying that I'll go first. I've got to see first hand what this Midoriya guy is all about," the green-haired girl gloated.

"Setsuna and Midoriya, it is," Mandalay declared.

"Setsuna-san, nice to meet you," Izuku smiled at her warmly.

"Drop the san. I don't like the formality. Do you prefer Midoriya or De-Ku?" that last word was said slowest and deliberately. She had done her research after all.

He narrowed his eyes, "I'm not going to enjoy this am I?"

Setsuna smirked, "Well, Midoriya that's up to you." He cocked his head. She was a person that liked to tease others and push or pull until it wasn't fun anymore. It was like dealing with a less angry Bakugo.

"Depends, Setsuna, do you have any real skills?" Izuku grinned walking ahead of her. The two of them were now walking through the forest.

"My quirk could blow yours out of the water," Setsuna boasted.

"Really?" Izuku was quick and put his hand on her shoulder, "If I was greedy or evil that would have been all it would have taken to duplicate your quirk." He removed his hand as her realization came.

"But you won't do that would you?" Setsuna wondered.

That wasn't the usual course of thought. Most were scared to have their quirk 'stolen'. Already she proved to be cut from a different cloth. Compassion was not a common trait for individuals that thought highly of themselves. "If you meet me before this week, then I might have. My quirk's influence is nothing short of complete. Only recently have I been freed of its control," Izuku admitted.

Setsuna frowned, "That sucks. My classmates all have a similar position. They think of their quirk as a curse or some useless feature of their person. I guess my impression of Class A was a bit off. I thought you guys were all confident and powerful."

Izuku chuckled a little bit, if she only knew. "A few of us are, but the strongest of us earned that power at a cost. A cost that many of them would rather not have paid."

"Like what?" she asked.

Izuku looked away nervous at that question. Some rustling of the bushes caught their attention. They were after all in a Walk of Courage. A telekinetic ping gave him a good idea of what was going on. One person was hiding and a psychic force was being exerted on objects around them.

Under her breath, "Poltergeist." Poltergeist? Was that the name of a quirk. An object soared at them. Izuku batted it away with his telekinesis.

"You have something similar?" Setsuna asked when she felt a finger run down her back. The green haired girl turned around to see no one. Her mind was racing in the dark. Instinctively, she got closer to Midoriya.

Again any touch came to her sides. "Umm, do you have anyone that can make people feel things?" Setsuna wondered. She wasn't shaken yet.

If not for the poltergeist, Izuku would have revealed their other pursuer. "I'd like to help ya, but your Poltergeist is really annoying," Izuku said deflecting more debris.

"She's not going to like hearing that," Setsuna commented.

A whisper came to Setsuna, "You're going to perish." Setsuna swung in a wide arc but caught nothing.

More objects were picked up. The nuisance had turned into something more dangerous. He decided to end this. A burst of telekinetic energy was released from Izuku. He looked over to the invisible girl. "Hagakure, that's enough playing. Setsuna might try to hurt you if you keep going," Izuku chastised her.

"Aww," she groaned, "But I was having so much fun! I didn't know I could spook people so easily."

"Are you invisible," Izuku pointed out.

"Oh right. I forget sometimes," she laughed. Setsuna was still confused. Slowly she approached the source of the sound. She reached out and grabbed Hagakure's face.

"Huh, you weren't kidding," Setsuna moved Hagakure around trying to see anything.

"Can you let go of my face?" Hagakure asked a bit muffled.

"Oh sorry. I've never meet someone invisible before," Setsuna chuckled a little embarrassed. A girl with silver hair stood up. She was about 15 meters (49ft) away. Her poltergeist quirk had a decent range. "Nice try, Reiko!" Setsuna waved at the silver girl. The girl walked over to them but gave no words expect for a nod.

"One of few words, we got one like that too," Izuku said just loud enough for Setsuna to hear.

"Reiko, move stuff around like there's a wind or get vines and have them creep on people," Setsuna offered advice.

Hagakure chimed in, "Hey, Midoriya, do you have any advice for me?" Setsuna looked over at him expecting a good answer.

"Hmm," he held his chin thinking, "Rustle the bushes and tree branches more before you sneak up on people. Get them paranoid first before heightening that."

Hagakure cheered, "Oh my god that's great advice!" A little bit of a devilish laugh came from her.

"What monster have I created?" Izuku whispered.

Setsuna set off already and beckoned for him, "Let's get to the halfway point before they think something went wrong." He nodded and caught up with her.

No one scared them or anything for that matter happened. They got to Ragdoll pretty quickly. Setsuna was showing off her quirk to him. Her power allowed her to separate her body parts from her being. They could then float around. It was useful for spying and sneak attacks. However, against someone as overwhelming strong as Midoriya it would be rather useless.

"I hope I never have to fight you in the future. You've got so many quirks to use," Setsuna waved to Ragdoll.

"I'll tell you what I tell my classmates: Master your quirk. I'll never be able to master the many I have," Izuku offered her noticing Ragdoll as well.

"I hope the dark forest hasn't been too scary!" Ragdoll said getting up. Her quirk was an interesting one. She could scan people and learn their quirk, height, weight, and much more. It was similar to his own except the information he gain was from kinetic transference or touching. A thought crossed his mind what it would be like to have both of them. Would they meld and elevate each other or would hers be treated separately. Something in the back of his mind stirred. A nudge from Setsuna broke him out of his stupor.

"You okay?" she wondered.

"Yeah, just some thoughts," Izuku smiled back. Ragdoll came over to them.

"Do either of you need any water or a snack?" she offered looking them over.

"I'm good. When do we know we're done?" Izuku wondered.

"I'll take some water," Setsuna requested.

Ragdoll nodded, "You'll be done once you see Mandalay on the other side." The pro fished a bottle from the cooler under her table.

Setsuna took the cold drink. "Thank you," Setsuna smiled at Ragdoll before opening the bottle and draining its contents.

"Thristy?" Izuku chuckled, "See ya later, Ragdoll."

Setsuna finished the bottle and handed it back to Ragdoll. She caught up with him. "I sweat less than the normal person so I need to balance out my body temperature every now and then," Setsuna shivered. He rose an eyebrow.

"Do you need a coat?" he asked seeing her rub her arms. Then he saw his breath. Crows and owls lined the trees. Two quirks were on display he knew very well. Frost was on the ground and leaves.

"You can do that?" she looked at him skeptically.

"Sure, can," he said removing his shirt.

"What are you doing!?" Setsuna cried out looking away.

"I have Yaoyorozu's quirk. It allows me to create objects. The catch is two prong. First it has to come from my skin. Second it requires stored fat to work. Hence why I took off my shirt wouldn't want the coat to shred the shirt," Izuku explained looking her up and done. Using his telekinesis he took measurements of her shoulders, bust, and waist. With that new knowledge making a comfortable coat was easy.

He tapped her shoulder and she looked back at him. His shirt was on and a coat in hand. The coat was green and black her colors. The green had a scale like appearance while the black was smooth. The collar was fluffy and there was no hood. Tentatively, she put on the coat. The sleeves went just past her wrists. Somehow he knew that preference of hers. The fluffy collar covered her whole neck and arced up just below her ears keeping that height around her backside. Whatever this material was it could breath and insulate. It was form fitting enough to make her looks, but not so much to be uncomfortable.

"This is amazing! What is this made of?" Setsuna wondered feeling her body warm up.

"Its three layers. The first layer that touches the skin is a silk-like material. The next layers is a crystal gel barrier. Its waterproof and impact resistant. The gel doesn't change in temperature very quickly. The last layer is something I really shouldn't be making. It... it would be a bit of a disservice to her, but if I have the knowledge why not use it?" he continued after a moment of reflection and sadness, "The third layer is a carbon-cotton polymer. The carbon is woven into the cotton as nano thread. Its pretty high tech. There's vents all over the third layer you can open them to allow for my airflow and cooling or close them and increase how well the insulation works. Its also impact resistant."

Setsuna found a few vents and opened them. The airflow was instantaneous. The 'vents' as Midoriya called them opened up the second layer to. Just one vent caused her to shiver again. "So where are these vents?" she wondered only finding the two.

He walked over to her. "Here," the two she found. His fingers touched one on each side of her torso, "Here." He got one step closer. She was looking up at him. The fingers traced to just above her butt, "Here." Then they went up to her shoulder blades, "Last set." Just like that he was done. He stepped away from her. For her that was one hell of an experience.

Blue flames danced across his skin. His hair turned into green fire. He illuminated the dark forest around them. The flames weren't hot. "Come on, let's go," he beckoned her after he got several stride ahead of her.

His fiery form left her awestruck until he called out to her. "Oh, ah, yeah," she managed catching up to him quick enough. Her curiosity had to be sated. Her hand reached out while he wasn't looking. She wanted to know if that fire was hot. Her hand stroked the fiery blue that came from him. It was a sensation unlike anything she had ever felt. The flame was like a soft malleable something. Kind of like a cloud she thought.

"Having fun?" Izuku smirked looking down at her.

She recoiled her hand in embarrassment. Her skin got a shade of red from embarrassing herself like that. "I-I get caught up by shiny stuff once in awhile," she admitted.

Izuku crooked an eyebrow at that. His fire wasn't shiny per say. Sure it produced light, but it wasn't shiny. But instead of pushing it he choose to accept her reasoning. "Then go ahead as long as they're on me they won't burn you," he offered.

She looked over to him in a bit of disbelief but mostly shock. "N-no its fine. I feel like it wouldn't be my place to do that," she replied making eye contact for a moment before looking away.

"Have it your way, Setsuna," Izuku shrugged. If not for Izuku's flames a certain darkness would have befallen them. Instead it moved in the shadows cast by his light. The man one with the darkness did what he could to give them a sense of being watched. A feeling that Izuku was more than comfortable with.

The next phenomenon that they were victim to was the swampy area they were traveling through. "I don't remember their being any swamps in this area," Izuku complained as he felt something like a vine touch his foot.

Setsuna was going to explain what was going on, but Izuku jumped out of the soft ground onto the air. She looked up to him and he was in fact standing on air. A possibility with one of her classmates, but he was still back at the camp with the other half. At that point she figured it was his telekinesis.

"Something just touched my foot and it was slimy," he complained again.

"Juzo and Ibara are probably around here somewhere. This is right up their alley," Setsuna shrugged wading through the soft swamp-like ground.

"Then I'll just stay up here. Slimy tentacles are not my cup of tea," Izuku shook his head trying to calm his stomach.

"Ibara, is harmless. She's too religious to do anything mean with them. I'd bet right now its taking all her willpower just to scary us with her vines," Setsuna smirked until a crow or two starting cawing. It was an eerie scene wading through the swamp with crows overhead. The cawing was just slow enough and the stares of the bird piercing enough to keep her on edge. Then she tripped. A vine had got in her way.

Mud was all over her face, hair, and clothes. Midoriya was quick to react. "You okay?" he asked kneeling next to her.

"I'm fine. Tripped is all," she replied. He offered a hand to help. She took it and he pulled her upright.

"I think we should be done with this and make our way out before anyone else tries to mess with us," Izuku recommended.

"I second that. I know for a fact they laughing their asses off from my fall," Setsuna admitted.

That was an unusual admission. Her boisterous attitude fell flat against Izuku, but for her classmates she was probably much like Yaoyorozu and Bakugo combined. Smart, helpful, but prideful and hurtful at times.

"I'll make a path and we can get out of here much faster than drudging through this ground," Izuku said stepping up onto nothing.

Setsuna knew that all telekinetics had they're limit. "Can you handle two people?" she asked her foot hitting the hard telekinetic surface.

"I'm at around 315kg at maximum so unless you weight 170kg or more, I'll be fine," Izuku turned to look at her.

She saw his eyes. They were shining green with lightning arcing around the iris and through the pupil. Whatever that power was it was not telekinesis. "I'm maybe 50kg on a bad day," Setsuna jumped up onto the platform.

"Good. Don't worry about going to far left or right. Otherwise I hope you're a good runner," Izuku broke into a jog.

She smiled at that. "I was in track and field in middle school so I hope so!" she caught up to him in a hurry. True to his word the solid ground under her remained no matter her footing or speed. She even passed him. Izuku broke out into a sprint to catch up.

"I really thought you'd be faster," Setsuna chided him.

"I can be, but you're striding with your quirk so that's cheating!" Izuku was straining to keep up with the splitting girl. Her core was what had to move for the rest of her to move smoothly. She could break up herself but all those parts had a range. Albeit that range was 150m but still it had a limit. By floating her body from her legs she could separate her legs and make much longer strides at about the same rate.

"Its not cheating. We're heroes and sometimes you just got to stretch your legs," Setsuna laughed at her own pun.

Izuku sighed before channeling power into his muscles. The increase to speed was noticeable. In what felt like a minute he caught up to her. "Fast enough for ya?" Izuku grinned picking up speed.

"Green lightning," she whispered under her breath. Just like his eye. Not wanting to be out done, she increased the rate of the strides. This was pushing herself.

For Izuku this wasn't pushing himself. He still had some 25-50% power that he could still utilize without dipping too far into his reserves. He wasn't going to tell her as that would be discouraging to hear.

* * *

Drakonite227: The original chapter was a bit longer but here is a decent cut off point. Friday will be broken into 3 parts. It's gunna be a long night for our heroes. I changed some of the canon events to make a bit more sense. You can expect most of the canon villains plus the extra ones. Let's just say this night ends up being very different from canon in a few ways.

I think Setsuna is an interesting character and the manga hasn't gone into her much at all. We have some idea of her personality, so I decided to use that as a jumping point. Once I get past the Internships I'll start to integrate Class B characters more often. Which will be awhile since this arc has 2 more chapters and then the All For One arc begins. Albeit that one is short its very important to my story.


End file.
